Writ Petition Maintainable Against Pvt. Educational Institutions As They Perform Public Function & Are Subject To State Education Rules: Jammu And Kashmir HC [Read Order]

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court last week reiterated that writ petitions against even purely private, unaided educational institutions are maintainable, considering they are performing public functions. Per contra, the respondents have sought dismissal of the writ petition inter-alia upon a preliminary / maiden objection qua the maintainability of the writ on the premise that the respondent-school is a private unaided minority educational institution and not a State under Article 12 of the constitution hence not amenable to writ jurisdiction of this Court. As regards the maintainability of the writ petition, the Single Judge was of the view that the issue is no more res-integra in view of law laid down by Apex Court in 2019 in Marwari Balika Vidyalaya v. Asha Srivastava and Ors., wherein the Supreme Court based upon the 2012 Ramesh Ahluwalia Vs. state of Punjab and Others as also Raj Kumar Vs. Director School Education and Ors has held that writ application is maintainable against a purely unaided educational institution performing public functions. "For all what emerges from the perusal of above provisions and the prepositions and principles enunciated by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the judgement is that the respondent- school even though an unaided private educational institution yet its establishment, running and functioning is regulated by and under the provisions of the aforesaid Act and the Rules", ruled the High Court, observing that the preliminary objection raised by the respondents regarding maintainability of the writ petition therefore is not legally tenable.