Petition to include religious schools in Right to Education (RTE)

Petition to include religious schools in Right to Education (RTE)

Recently, the Supreme Court has rejected the petition to include religious schools in the Right to Education (RTE).

The Supreme Court has rejected a petition related to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act (2009). The petition challenged the constitutional validity of Sections 1(4) and 1(5) of the Act.

Section 1(5): Nothing in this Act shall apply to Madrasas, Vedic Pathshalas and institutions providing primarily religious education.

Section 1(4): The provisions of this Act shall be subject to the provisions of Articles 29 and 30 of the Constitution.

Petitioner’s argument:

  • The above provisions deprive these institutions of educational excellence.
  • The right of a child should not be limited to free education only, but it should be extended to education of equal quality. Therefore, in this PIL, a uniform curriculum and program has been proposed for the children of classes 1 to 8 across the country.

Views of Supreme Court on Regulation of Minority Educational Institutions:

TMA Pai Foundation case (2002): The rights of minorities are neither unlimited nor above the law under Article 30(1) of the Constitution. Any regulation made in the national interest must be applicable to all institutions.

SK Mohd. Rafiq Case (2020): If the objective is to ensure excellence in a minority institution, regulation may be allowed.

In the year 2014, it was decided in Pramati case that the entire provisions of the RTE Act would not be applicable to minority schools.

Constitutional Provisions on the Rights of Minorities:

  • Article 29(1): Any class of citizens has the right to the protection of its particular language, script or culture.
  • Article 30(1): All minorities based on religion or language shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.

Source – The Hindu

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