The Delhi High Court has directed Lieutenant Governor V. K. Saxena to provide a personal hearing to a private, unaided school in the city before making any decisions regarding the potential takeover of its management. This directive comes in response to allegations of administrative and financial irregularities.

Justice C. Hari Shankar emphasized that the authority to take over a school lies with the lieutenant governor, who functions as the administrator under the law. In light of this, he specified that the granting of a hearing should be done by the lieutenant governor and not by the Directorate of Education, which had initially issued a show cause notice to the school.

"It also goes without saying that a personal hearing can be granted only by the authority that is to make the decision. Law in this country does not envisage, or even tolerate, personal hearings being granted by Peter where the decision is to be taken by Paul," said the court in an order passed this week.

The statement asserts that a Division Bench of the Court has determined that the authority to take control of a school's management exclusively rests with the Hon'ble Lieutenant Governor in their capacity as the administrator and is not within the purview of the Directorate of Education (DOE).

The court specified that the personal hearing would be scheduled at the convenience of the lieutenant governor. The responsibility to be present and refrain from seeking any adjournment was placed on the petitioner.

The petitioner, a private unaided recognized senior secondary school, received a show cause notice from the Directorate of Education (DOE) on September 13, 2021. The notice highlighted several "management and administration related discrepancies as well as financial and other irregularities" in the school's operations. The DOE sought an explanation as to why action for taking over the management of the school should not be initiated in accordance with the provisions of the Delhi School Education Act.

The petitioner, represented by advocate Kamal Gupta, argued that while the Directorate of Education (DOE) agreed to provide a hearing before making a decision, a personal hearing could only be granted by the lieutenant governor. According to the petitioner, the authority to decide on taking over the management of the school rested solely with the lieutenant governor.

The court emphasized that the decision to take over the management of a running school is a significant and extreme measure that carries civil consequences. As a result, the court highlighted the imperative nature of providing an opportunity for a personal hearing before such a decision is made.

"Given the drastic nature of the action that is proposed in the show cause notice dated September 13, 2021, it is obvious that the authority that is empowered in this regard should necessarily provide a personal hearing to the petitioner before the said decision is taken," the court said.