Delhi HC says govt has to fund public education, JNU students can register at old rates without late fee

The Delhi High Court on Friday ruled that students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) who are yet to register for the ongoing winter semester can do so according to the rules of the old hostel manual within a week, it was reported by Bar & Bench. No late fee can be imposed on the students for the late registration.

The court has also asked the JNU authorities to respond to file its response within two weeks. The ruling was passed by a Single Judge Bench of Justice Rajiv Shakdher. The petition was filed by the JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) that challenged the university’s new hostel manual. The petitioners have said that the decision-making process was mala fide, arbitrary, illegal and would adversely affect the students.

The plea was filed after the university authorities on October 28, 2019, had hiked the hostel fees and brought certain changes in the existing rules and regulations in the hostel manual. The students mainly protested the fee hike and increase in other charges of the hostels. However, the students’ demands were not met with, and large scale protests followed in which the police had allegedly baton charged students. The students had also alleged that JNUSU, the students’ body of the university, was not consulted before making the changes in fee structure.

Justice Shakdher urged the university authorities to discuss the matter with students. He was quoted in the report saying: “Government cannot get out of education… Government has to fund public education… responsibility to pay salaries cannot be on the students.. someone has to find the funds”. The next hearing will be on February 28.