Parents should bear cost of air conditioning facility in school: Delhi HC
New Delhi (PTI): The cost of air conditioning in school has to be borne by the parents as it is a facility being provided to the students, which is no different from the other charges such as laboratory fee, the Delhi High Court has said.
A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) against a private school charging Rs 2,000 per month for the air conditioning in classes and stated that such financial burden cannot be fastened on the school management alone and parents should be mindful of the facilities and their cost while selecting a school.
The petitioner, whose ward studied in class 9 in the private school, argued that the obligation to provide air conditioning facilities to the students rests with the management and it should, therefore, be provided by them from their own funds and resources.
Noting that the fee receipt duly records the entry of charges for air conditioning which is admittedly being provided to the students, the court opined that prima facie there is no irregularity in the charge levied by the school.
“The costs of air conditioning services provided to the children in the school have to be borne by the parents as it is a facility provided to the children and is no different from the other charges such as laboratory fee and smart class fee levied. The parents, while selecting the school, have to be mindful of the facilities and the cost of the facilities provided to children in school.
“The financial burden of providing such facilities cannot be fastened on the school management alone,” the bench, also comprising Justice Manmeet PS Arora, said in an order passed on May 2.
The court observed that the Directorate of Education was also seized of the issue after it received complaints and the petition was not maintainable.
“We are, therefore, not inclined to entertain the present PIL and the same is dismissed,” the court concluded.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
