Students Protest Against Fee Exploitation by Private Schools in Aiza Mandal.
Following the rally, a delegation of student leaders submitted a memorandum to the Mandal Revenue Officer (MRO), urging immediate intervention and strict action against erring schools, particularly Sri Krishnaveni Private School, which was singled out for multiple violations.
Key Allegations and Demands
Student leaders alleged that private schools in the region were collecting exorbitant and unregulated fees, in clear violation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act and existing fee regulation laws. They claimed that:
Sri Krishnaveni School was forcing parents to purchase uniforms, textbooks, and notebooks at inflated prices from a shop operated illegally beside the school.
The school's management had set up a fake certificate-backed book center and was openly selling books on the roadside, yet no action was taken by education officials despite earlier complaints to the District Collector.
The Mandal Education Officer (MEO) allegedly ignored direct instructions from the District Education Officer (DEO) to seize the illegal book stock, and even remarked that he would only take action "if provided protection."
Furthermore, the students claimed that:
Bonafide and Transfer Certificates (TCs) were being issued only after collecting up to ₹2,000 from Class 10 students.
The school fee for Class 10 was increased from ₹28,000 in the academic year 2024–25 to ₹34,000 for 2025–26 without any justification.
School staff, including drivers and teachers, were reportedly forced by the management to protest in front of the MEO office, allegedly with the support of the MEO himself.
Alleged Assault and Demand for Action
The situation further escalated when student union leaders visited another school, Sri Chaitanya, after receiving reports about similar irregularities. They were allegedly assaulted by men linked to Krishnaveni School owner Madhusudan Reddy, who reportedly sent his drivers to threaten and attack the students.
Demanding justice, the protestors urged the authorities to:
Suspend the MEO for negligence and bias.
Cancel the recognition of Sri Krishnaveni School for repeated violations.
File criminal charges against the school owner Madhusudan Reddy and the individuals involved in the assault.
Enforce the RTE Act to ensure that 25% of seats are reserved for underprivileged students.
Implement and monitor the Fee Regulation Act across the district to protect parents from financial exploitation.
Leaders and Organizations Involved.
The protest was led by a coalition of prominent student unions and youth organizations, including:
Kuruvu Pallayya – BRSV District Coordinator,
Mala Mallikarjun – BRS Youth Convener,
Haleem Pasha – PDSU District President,
Veeresh – Former BRSV Town President,
Praveen – AISF District Secretary,
Vamanapalli Rangaswamy – USFI,
Danayya – PYL District President,
Harish – PYL District Secretary,
Subhan – TNSF,
Chandu Pasha and Raju – PDSU, Nadigadda.
The protest has triggered widespread discussions across the district about the need for accountability and regulation in private education. With growing public pressure, all eyes are now on district authorities and the education department to take immediate corrective measures and restore faith in the education system.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scroll.in
37 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
India needs an ‘innocence movement' to address the miscarriage of justice
On July 21, the Bombay High Court acquitted 12 Muslim men of terror charges in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts case. Five of them were on death row and one had died in jail. These men had been arrested soon after the explosions in Mumbai local trains killed at least 180 people. The judgement represents a broader phenomenon where people accused in terror cases spend long years in prison before a court finally concludes that there was no real evidence connecting them to the alleged crime. From 2014 to 2022, according to the National Crime Records Bureau, 8,719 cases were registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, but there were only 222 convictions – a rate of around 2.5%. It is also unclear how many of these convictions will ultimately be overturned following stricter scrutiny by the appellate courts, just like in the train blasts case. Some have criticised the Bombay High Court judgement, contending that criminal procedure should not come in the way of national security. But a scrutiny of the judgement shows that it was not merely the outcome of sticking to legal formalities but based on an analysis of substantial problems with the investigation and prosecution in this case. One of the main grounds for the trial court to convict the 12 men was their confessional statements. But when he Bombay High Court examined the circumstances in which these confessions were made, it found that even basic requirements of criminal procedure and evidence law were not followed. The confession should have been in a language the accused could understand and read back to them. In addition, they should have been informed of their right to consult a lawyer. The High Court also took a detailed look at the allegations of torture made by the accused during the investigation that had not been properly scrutinised at the time. It concluded that the confessions had been extracted by subjecting the men to torture and so were not admissible. The court also pointed to glaring flaws in how the investigation and prosecution was conducted, such as deliberately suppressing Call Detail Records that could have exonerated the accused at the investigation stage itself. All of this leads to the very real possibility that the entire case against the 12 men was false or fabricated. "When we were accused, we had to find lawyers to defend us. When we are innocent, we still have to find lawyers to approach courts to compensate us. Does society owe us no responsibility?" Harsh Mander talks to two men Muslim men about their prolonged… — (@scroll_in) August 18, 2025 The disturbing pattern of Muslim men booked under terror charges being acquitted after spending years in prison has been well documented. In 2012, the Jamia Teachers' Solidarity Association documented 16 cases in Delhi in which men booked for terror offences were acquitted due to the absence of evidence. The Innocence Network India, an initiative by one of the men exonerated in the Mumbai train blasts case, has also documented similar cases. Both these reports have been cited by the Law Commission in its 277th Report, which recommended that a law be enacted to redress miscarriages of justice. The Law Commission report said that one of the 'gravest instances' of the miscarriage of justice was a terror prosecution that resulted in an acquittal after 23 years: Mohammad Nissarudin had been arrested in 1994 and charged in the 1993 Rajdhani train blast case under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987, among other charges. The report envisages a Special Court being set up to determine claims of compensation for wrongful prosecution. It also strongly recommends recognising 'wrongful prosecution' as a standard for identifying cases of the miscarriage of justice in India (in contrast to wrongful conviction or wrongful incarceration), This would include police or prosecutorial misconduct resulting in malicious or negligent investigation or prosecution. Recent judgements, such as by the Supreme Court in the case of Kattavellai vs The State Of Tamil Nadu, as well as the Allahabad and Kerala High Courts, have sought to have the Law Commission report's recommendations implemented. Article 14(6) of the International Convention of Civil and Political Rights obligates India to enact a legislation to redress miscarriages of justice. In India, compensation has been recognised as both a private and public law remedy. In the case of public remedies, in cases of fundamental rights being violated, the High Courts and the Supreme Court have, through several judgements, read down the principle of sovereign immunity that would have protected the nation from being held legally liable. Courts have awarded compensation in cases of illegal detention and police misconduct. However, Indian courts have been reluctant to order compensation in cases involving alleged threats to national security. In 2016, when six Muslim men acquitted in the Akshardham blast case in Delhi approached the Supreme Court seeking compensation for their wrongful arrest, the court orally observed that entertaining such a petition would set a 'dangerous precedent'. The Supreme Court, in its order acquitting the accused, had pointed to several lapses in the investigation, including clear instances of the police fabricating evidence. Despite these observations, the spectre of national security superseded constitutional propriety. In stark contrast to this, two years later, the Supreme Court awarded Rs 50 lakh in compensation to Indian Space Research Organisation scientist Nambi Narayanan, who had been booked under the Official Secrets Act, among other offences. He was discharged when the Central Bureau of Investigation filed a closure report in the case. Narayanan was awarded compensation by the High Court of Kerala, the Supreme Court and the National Human Rights Commission. Adherence to procedure or the lack thereof during investigation and prosecution are crucial determinants of the fairness of a trial. Human rights advocate KG Kannabiran pointed out that the 'defence of a citizen as a person has always been procedure'. Procedural safeguards, such as magisterial oversight in the recording of self-incriminating statements or medical checkups while in police custody, potentially counter factors such as prejudice from impairing the integrity of a criminal trial. As a consequence, the Bombay High Court's findings on the procedural lapses in the train blasts investigation and the reasoning are critical to understanding the prosecution case itself. When these findings are read with the findings of courts in other terror cases, it reveals the faultlines of a criminal justice system that has long been overshadowed by similar stories of people incarcerated solely due to their identity or political ideology. Play As is evident from the high rate of acquittals under terror laws, these cases collapse once the prosecution's narrative is tested on the anvil of evidence and legal procedure. Despite a repeated pattern of cases in which innocent people are falsely charged with serious offences and spend long years in prison, innocence remains a matter of subjective interpretation. The consistent pattern in terror cases of trial court findings being reversed and the low conviction rates may be revealing but it is equally important to evaluate procedural fairness in these cases. Establishing factual innocence in western countries has relied primarily on forensic evidence but there are limitations to doing so within the Indian legal system. While DNA-based technology has not gained much ground in investigations, the government's previous attempts to do so have raised privacy concerns. However, awarding compensation should not depend only on proving malice in prosecution, something which the Law Commission report also cautions against. It also recognises negligence in investigations as amounting to wrongful prosecution. Compensation is also just one aspect of redressing the miscarriage of justice. Establishing the accountability of officials involved is just as important, as the Law Commission Report has recognised, as also the Supreme Court in the Nambi Narayanan judgement. There is an urgent need to rethink the innocence movement in India. Meaningful legislative reforms must be preceded by a wider public articulation and understanding of the various forms of miscarriage of justice. The Bombay High Court's judgement in the train blasts case is one of the rare examples of the basic principles of criminal justice being upheld over the presumptions of prosecutorial claims. The fact that a trial court had convicted the accused on the basis of the same evidence – and even awarded the death sentence to five of the accused – is a chilling reminder of what happens when the spectre of national security and suspicion is allowed to overpower the basic principles of judicial reasoning. It should be seen as a clarion call to initiate substantive reforms in the practices of investigation and prosecution, as well as the manner in which serious offences such as terrorism are formulated and imagined. Madhur Bharatiya is an Assistant Professor at Manipal Law School, Bangalore, Manipal Academy of Higher Education. Fawaz Shaheen is a lawyer and researcher based in Delhi.
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Parl panel seeks review of safe harbour laws
A house panel has recommended the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) to review the safe harbour protections available to intermediaries, like social media companies who host user generated content, under the IT Act, especially where platforms fail to act on unlawful content. This is to strike a balance between their liability immunity and the need for greater accountability, said the committee. Parl panel seeks review of safe harbour laws The recommendation was made in the 254th report of the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs, titled 'Cyber Crime - Ramifications, Protection and Prevention,' tabled in parliament on Wednesday. The 'safe harbour' protections, under section 79 of the IT Act, exempts the intermediaries from liability for the actions of their users, as long as they adhere to guidelines prescribed by the government. The Committee urged MeitY, along with home and law ministries, to amend the IT Act to make social media platforms legally accountable if they ignore takedown orders. It suggested graded penalties, fines or even suspension for repeat violations, while ensuring due process and appeal rights to protect free speech. 'The Committee has observed that certain social media intermediaries at times fail to cooperate with law enforcement agencies and legal provisions in promptly removing unlawful content, including morphed videos, fake profiles, misinformation and content promoting violence based on religion or caste, thereby potentially abetting criminal activities and undermining public order,' said the committee. This comes as X (formerly Twitter) awaits judgment in its case against the centre, challenging the government's content takedown orders issued under section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act and its use of the Sahyog Portal to issue content takedown notices. While section 79 of the Act provides intermediaries with 'safe harbour', under part (3)(b), the intermediary can lose if it fails to remove the unlawful content after being notified by the government. The Sahyog portal enables the process of issuing takedown orders under section 79(3)(b), which X says circumvents section 69A of the IT Act, which has the necessary safeguards for intermediaries. On over-the-top (OTT) platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, etc, the committee recommended setting up a panel of experts to review flagged content after release, frame cultural guidelines, and suggest penalties for violations. The house panel said these platforms, unlike films, face weak checks and minors remain exposed to harmful content. It also called for stronger age verification, better parental controls, and mandatory regional language content warnings on th eplatforms. This comes after the minister of information and broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw, recently revealed in Lok Sabha that the ministry had blocked 43 OTT platforms for obscene and objectionable content. The release of the report by the house panel also coincided with the passing of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill in Lok Sabha, which puts a ban on online money games. The committee in its report had recommended to the MeitY to create a dedicated online gaming ecosystem through broad consultations, one that tackles issues with real money and betting apps while also nurturing India's multimedia, animation, and gaming industries.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Two men die, one injured after falling off Panjagutta flyover in Hyderabad as bike crashes into sidewall
1 2 3 4 Hyderabad: Two construction workers died, while their friend suffered severe injuries when they fell from the Panjagutta flyover after their bike crashed into the side wall due to speeding in the early hours of Wednesday. A preliminary probe suggested that the rider was allegedly riding under the influence of alcohol. The deceased were identified as Laxminarayana alias Srinivas, 30, and Bharat, 28 and the injured as Venu, 28, all construction workers from Balamrai. At 12:55am, when they were travelling from Begumpet towards Panjagutta, Laxminarayana, who was driving the bike, lost control over the two-wheeler at a curve on the Panjagutta flyover due to speeding. "The bike hit the left side wall of the flyover, and the three victims fell on to the road below near Y2K hotel, close to Panjagutta traffic police station. None wore helmets, and all of them sustained severe injuries due to the fall," Panjagutta sub-inspector (SI) B Venugopal said. Locals immediately alerted the Panjagutta police. The injured were rushed to Osmania General Hospital in an ambulance. "Bharat was declared brought dead at the hospital. Laxminarayana succumbed to injuries at 8:26 am while undergoing treatment. Venu suffered fractures to his right leg and left hand. He is undergoing treatment, and his condition is stable," the SI said. You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad | Gold Rates Today in Hyderabad | Silver Rates Today in Hyderabad In his statement to police, Venu confessed that they had purchased liquor at Satya Wines in Tadbund and consumed it at a construction site in Balamrai on Tuesday night and started on a bike towards Panjagutta to buy dinner. The blood sample of Laxminarayana, who was riding the bike, was collected for analysis. A case was registered under Section 106 (1) (causing death due to negligence) and 125 (b) (causing grievous hurt by an act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Motor Vehicle (MV) Act. The bodies of the victims were handed over to their families after the post-mortem examination. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
