The ongoing debate surrounding the recent amendments to the RTE Act by the state education authorities continues without resolution. Following a writ petition in the Bombay High Court, a public-interest litigation (PIL) has now been filed in the Nagpur High Court, challenging the state government’s notification that altered regulations under the Right To Education (RTE) Act. This notification exempted private schools that were within a radius of 1-kilometere of a government-run school from admitting children under the RTE quota.

The amendment, introduced in February of this year, overturned the previous mandate that obligated reputed self-financed and private unaided schools from primary to eighth grade to reserve 25 per cent of their seats under the Right to Education Act. This provision ensured that financially disadvantaged students could access quality education in private, unaided schools regardless of their economic background, thanks to RTE. The petition filed in the Bombay High Court involved 17 individuals, including members of the management of aided schools and parents from socio-economically backward classes.