Punjab to mandate refunds for excess private school fee hikes, says Arvind Kejriwal

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on June 6 said Punjab has become the first state in the country to act against what he described as arbitrary fee increases by private schools, announcing that institutions charging excess fees will be required to refund the additional amount collected from students and parents.

Referring to the Punjab government's decision, Kejriwal said the AAP-led administration has directed private schools to return fees collected beyond prescribed limits.

He said Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had recently announced plans to introduce a new law to regulate fee revisions in private schools. Under the proposed legislation, schools will not be permitted to raise fees by more than 5% annually.

According to Kejriwal, the limit will cover all types of charges imposed by schools, including tuition fees, library fees, development charges, and other related expenses.

He added that schools which raised fees by more than 15% over the past three years would be required to refund the amount collected beyond the allowed threshold.

Explaining the provision, Kejriwal said that if a school had increased its fees by 50% during the past three years, it would have to refund 35% of the amount charged to students.

Questioning whether such action had been taken elsewhere, Kejriwal said, "Have you ever heard in the history of India that a private school was ordered to refund fees and the money was credited back to parents' bank accounts?"

Drawing a comparison with Delhi, he said a similar measure was implemented when the AAP was in power there, with private schools being directed to refund excess fees collected from students. He said Punjab would now follow the same approach.

Speaking on education, Kejriwal said parents across the state want access to quality schooling for their children.

He noted that the Punjab government has been working to strengthen government schools and claimed that the state recently ranked first in school education, overtaking Kerala in the latest NITI Aayog assessment.

He also mentioned that the government is addressing the concerns of parents whose children attend private schools.

While highlighting that not all private institutions impose steep fee hikes, he said some schools increase charges without justification, placing an additional financial burden on families.

Describing the move as a major relief for parents, Kejriwal said the decision would help improve accountability in the private school system.

He further called for similar regulations across the country, saying there should be a nationwide cap on private school fee increases and that other states should consider adopting Punjab's model.