Kejriwal has double standards on private schools’ fee hike: BJP leader

New Delhi, Dec 15 (IANS) The BJP Delhi unit on Friday accused Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of showing "double standards" on the issue of fee hike in private schools in the national capital.

"Nowadays, parents of students of private schools are getting notices to pay Rs 10,000 to Rs 40,000 extra fees to these schools," Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Manoj Tiwari told reporters here.

"Kejriwalji's double standards have been exposed since he says on one hand that private schools will not be allowed to increase fees, on the other his government has issued orders to private schools to collect more fees," the BJP MP from northeast Delhi said.

Tiwari said the order to collect more fees to private schools was issued by the Directorate of Education (DoE).

Slamming Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is the Education Minister, Tiwari said: "You promised to take action against schools if they increased fees. But how have you given them permission now to collect more fees?"

"Is there any deal (by the Kejriwal government) with private schools? Or is it a way to collect subsidy earlier given on water and electricity?"

The BJP leader's remarks came soon after parents of private school students protested outside Sisodia's residence on Mathura Road here against notices to them to pay extra fees.

The notices were sent to parents as per a DoE circular notifying Pay Commission recommendations, which said a school can claim up to 15 per cent fee hike for the current salaries and 7.5 per cent for arrears, only if all other resources have been exhausted.

On Thursday, Kejriwal had warned Delhi's private schools against effecting steep fee hike along with arrears under the pretext of complying with the 7th Pay Commission recommendations.

On Wednesday, the Delhi government ordered the formation of district-level fee anomaly committees in all 12 DoE districts to look into complaints against schools that have sought a fee hike.

Tiwari also sought to put the Delhi government on the mat regarding cancellation of the licence of Max Hospital in Shalimar Bagh.

"When you cancelled its licence, we did not question you. But if you will reinstate the hospital's licence, we will understand that you have cut a deal with them," the BJP leader said.

The government had, on December 8, cancelled its licence regarding the November 30 declaration of a newborn premature baby as dead by hospital doctors even though he was alive.