Dinesh Biwaji Ashtikar vs State of Maharashtra & Ors.

Held: The obligation of a “neighbourhood school” to admit children belonging to weaker and disadvantaged sections of the society, to the extent of twenty five percent of the class strength, u/s.12 has the extraordinary capacity to transform the social structure of the society – Ensuring admission of such students must be a national mission and an obligation of the appropriate government and the local authority – To ensure a smooth and transparent admission process and in order to enable eligible children to access the right of admission u/s.12(1)(c), the steps to be taken as regards the Preparatory Stage (Finalization of seats, Advertisement, Schedule of admission, Centralized online system, Criteria, Documents, Information about the school, Dispute settlement); Processing Applications, Selection and Admission (Help-desks; Selection criteria; Scrutiny of applications, Window for correction of defects, Dispute resolution); After Completion of Admission Process (Speaking order, Admission process, Initiation of inquiry, Post-admission, Reimbursement, Finality of selection), enumerated – Appropriate authorities to prepare and issue, in consultation with the NCPCR and SCPCRs, as the case may be, as well as the National and State Advisory Councils, necessary rules and regulations u/s.38 of the Act for implementing the mandate of s.12(1)(c) of the Act – NCPCR, New Delhi to be impleaded as a party respondent – The copy of the order be sent to the Commission for compliance and monitoring – Commission to collate information about the issuance of rules and regulations by the appropriate Governments of the States and Union Territories and file an affidavit before this Court by 31st of March, 2026 – Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005 – ss.3, 17. [Paras 1, 6.3]

Constitution of India – Article 21A – Right to Education – Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 – s.12 – Extent of school’s responsibility for free and compulsory education – ‘neighbourhood school’ denied admission to petitioner’s children for free and compulsory elementary education in 2016 – Petitioner filing writ petition, High Court turned back the petitioner on the ground that he had failed to take up appropriate steps to admit his kids in the free education quota – SLP thereagainst pending in Supreme Court for a long time:

Held: Unfortunately, the matter has become infructuous – However, in order to ensure that this situation shall not revisit parents like the petitioner again and again, case taken up for precedent making and to examine the efficiency and effectiveness of the procedures for complying with the mandate of s.12 – Amicus curiae appointed. [Para 3]

Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 – ss.12, 6, 9, 2(h), 10 – Extent of school’s responsibility for free and compulsory education – Duty of appropriate Government and local authority to establish school – Duties of local authority – Fundamental duties – Duty of parents and guardian – Constitution of India – Arts.21A, 51A(k) – Right to Education:

Held: Constitution declares elementary education as a fundamental right, as against many other liberties, which are in the nature of fundamental freedoms – The consequence of identifying the right to elementary education as a positive right is the recognition of co-relative duties and identification of five duty bearers, being

(i) the appropriate government, (ii) the local authority, (iii) the neighbourhood schools, (iv) the parents/guardians, and (v) the primary school teachers – Obligations and duties of the duty bearers, highlighted. [Paras 6-6.5]

Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 – s.12 – Extent of school’s responsibility for free and compulsory education – Constitutional philosophy & mandate of s.12 – Two foundational constitutional values: Held: Not less than twenty-five percent of the strength of an entrylevel class shall be reserved for and filled by children belonging to “weaker sections” and “disadvantaged groups”, who are thereby guaranteed access to free elementary education – Such children are to be admitted to unaided schools in their neighbourhood, thereby embedding within the statutory framework the principle that the constitutional promise of education under Article 21A is to be realised through common local schools rather than segregated or parallel systems – The legislative choice to implement the right to free and compulsory education through neighbourhood schools is not merely administrative; it is a deliberate constitutional strategy to operationalise equality of status, dignity, and social integration among children in their formative years – In sustaining s.12, the Supreme Court has recognised that the rights of children carry corresponding obligations on the State to “respect, protect and fulfill” those rights and to regulate private educational institutions so that children’s rights are not violated even in non-State spheres. [Para 7]

Constitution of India – Article 21A – Right to Education – Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 – Scheme of the Act:

Held: Statutory design is normatively ambitious – It envisages elementary education for all children, across the spectrum of class, caste, gender and economic position, in a shared institutional space – s.12 seeks to concretises the constitutional principle of fraternity alongside equality and liberty – The 25% inclusion u/s.12, in unaided neighbourhood schools, is not an isolated welfare measure but a vehicle through which the constitutional commitment to fraternity and the “development of the child” as recognised in Article 21A and Article 39(f) is sought to be realized. [Para 8]

Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 – s.12 – Extent of school’s responsibility for free and compulsory education – “neighbourhood schools” – Emphasis on “neighbourhood schools” is rooted in the National System of Education, as elaborated in the Kothari Commission Report, which recommended a Common School System whereby all children, irrespective of social or economic background, would attend the same neighbourhood schools and learn together in an integrated, non-segregated environment:

Held: This model envisages the school as a common civic space that breaks down barriers of caste, class and gender, and thereby advances substantive equality and social justice – Policy rationale underlying s.12, stated. [Para 9]

Constitution of India – Article 21A – Right to Education – Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 – s.12 – Role of judiciary:

Held: Ensuring admission of at least twenty-five percent of class strength in unaided schools with children of weaker and disadvantaged groups is certainly a national mission – Effective implementation of the statutory policy will be transformative and, in this regard, each one, be it the institution or an individual, be it the Central or the State Governments, Advisory Councils or Commissions are duty bearers – The most important role is of the neighbourhood schools and its teachers – In this mission, the judiciary also bears the burden to ensure that the process of admission is easily accessible, effective and efficient – Court must also ensure that judicial remedies against inaction or inefficiency are redressed effectively and expeditiously. [Para 10]