Karnataka high court stays order on CBSE, ICSE schools

Parents locked in a legal battle over indiscriminate fee hikes in Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Indian School Certificate Examination (ICSE) schools in the city suffered a new setback on Monday.

The high court stayed the earlier single bench judgment which stated that these schools come under the purview of the Karnataka Education Act. The stay order prevents the state government from having any role in regulating admission and fee structure in these schools.

The division bench on Monday observed that the controversy has wide implications and expressed its eagerness to consider all the issues. The division bench later adjourned the hearing to August 22.

The single judge on January 10, 2011, had quashed the section 1 (3) (iii-a) of the Karnataka Education Act that had excluded these schools from the purview of the Karnataka Education Act while hearing a petition filed by the parents association of the Bishop Cotton Girls’ School and The Parachute Regiment School questioning the unreasonable hike in school fees by CBSE and ICSE schools.