SC to hear PIL seeking regulation of all schools & religious institutes for children under 14

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on May 11 a PIL seeking directions to regulate all institutions imparting education or religious instructions to children below the age of 14 years. A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma is likely to hear the plea filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay. The plea, filed through advocate Ashwani Dubey, has sought directions to "take appropriate steps to register, recognise, supervise and monitor all institutions, imparting secular education and/or religious instruction to children up to the age of 14 years in spirit of Article 21A read with Article 39 (f), 45 and 51-A(k)."

The petition stated that Article 30 does not grant any special or additional rights to minorities beyond what is already guaranteed under Article 19(1)(g). "Direct and declare that Article 30 is specific reiteration of the Article 19(1)(g) and doesn't confer any additional rights/benefits/privileges than the rights guaranteed to the citizens under Article 19(1)(g)," the plea said. "Petitioner is filing the PIL under Article 32 for registration recognition supervision monitoring of all institutions imparting secular/religious education to children up to 14 years in spirit of Article 21A, 39(f), 45 and 51-A(k).

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"Petitioner submits that children are the backbone of nation's growth and are also gullible & naive due to their tender age. Hence, State has heightened responsibility towards them. This is an issue of national security as young kids form the future of nation, can be brainwashed/manipulated in unregistered institution," it said.

Upadhyay, in his plea, has claimed that he visited several districts along the Uttar Pradesh border, where numerous unregistered and unrecognised institutions were allegedly found operating. He said unregistered and unrecognised institutions are proliferating across the border areas of the country without any effective oversight or regulatory mechanism.