The Directorate of Education (DoE) of Delhi Government on Friday told the Delhi High Court that notices were issued to 25 unaided private schools here following their indictment by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) for accounting malpractices, including faking loss.

“We (DoE) have already issued notices to 25 erring schools,” the counsel, appearing for the schools' regulator, told a bench of Mr Justice A.K. Sikri and Mr Justice Sidhharth Mridul.

The DoE said the show-cause notices were issued in pursuance of the CAG's report relating to financial year of 2006 to 2009.

Meanwhile, Mr Ashok Aggarwal, counsel for the Delhi Abhibhavak Mahasangh, sought an investigation by an agency such as the Central Bureau of Investigation into the irregularities pointed out by the CAG in the report.

“The CAG report reveals not only several accounting malpractices but commission of criminal offences. Some agency like CBI should be asked to investigate into it,” Mr Aggarwal said.

He said, “As the new academic year is about to commence, the schools, which faked the loss, be restrained from raising fee as it is next to impossible to get it (hike) rolled back. Now, it is established that they are earning profits. Monitoring committees, on the lines of Tamil Nadu where retired high court judges head them, could be formed. And they will monitor the issues such as fee hike.”

He also referred to various apex court judgements to drive home the point that the private unaided schools have “every right to hike the fees but they cannot be allowed to commercialise the education simultaneously.”

Every child now has been awarded the right to free education, he said.

The lawyer, representing the schools, sought some time to rebut the arguments of Mr Aggarwal saying he had not been supplied with a copy of the CAG report. Advocate Gaurang Kanth, appearing for CAG, said, “The report is already there on the Web site.”

The court fixed on March 29 for further hearing on the plea challenging the city government's decision to allow the schools to hike the tuition and the development fees.

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