The Impressive TimesNew Delhi, April 4, 2025: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has accused the BJP-led Delhi government of reviving the private school mafia, alleging that within a month of coming to power, private schools in the capital have arbitrarily increased fees by 20% to 82%. Parents are staging protests across the city, but the BJP government remains silent, siding with wealthy school owners, AAP leaders claimed.
AAP National Convenor and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal criticized the BJP for allowing private schools to exploit parents. Taking to social media platform X, he wrote, “In ten years, we didn’t allow private schools in Delhi to hike their fees arbitrarily. We ended the education mafia. Within just a month of their government taking over, the education mafia has returned.”
Echoing similar sentiments, former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia slammed the BJP for giving a free hand to private schools. “Thousands of parents are worried about their children’s future. BJP has given private schools the liberty to hike fees without any check. Some have gone to the extreme of increasing fees by up to 82%. Parents who cannot afford the hike are being humiliated,” Sisodia said.
AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj accused the BJP of targeting the middle class. “For years, the BJP claimed AAP only benefited the poor. But now, with their government in power, even the middle class is suffering,” he said.
Bharadwaj cited reports from several elite schools in Delhi where students were allegedly barred from entering classrooms due to unpaid increased fees. “Students from prominent schools in Dwarka, Vasant Kunj, and Rohini were forced to sit in the library for an entire day while their classmates attended lessons. They were even escorted to the washrooms to prevent them from sneaking into classrooms.”
He also highlighted the case of Salwan Public School in Mayur Vihar Phase 3, where fees were hiked by 82%, with 57% already implemented. Similarly, Maharaja Agrasen School in Pitampura and Prajna School in Vasant Kunj increased their fees by 65%, forcing parents to protest outside school gates.
Bharadwaj recalled that during AAP’s governance, any arbitrary fee hikes by private schools were immediately challenged by local AAP MLAs. “Under Arvind Kejriwal’s leadership, notices were issued to cancel school registrations indulging in unfair fee hikes. But today, no BJP MLA is standing with parents. Instead, they are siding with the school owners,” he said.
AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha reiterated that Kejriwal had warned voters about such actions. “During elections, we cautioned that if the BJP came to power, private school fees would skyrocket. Today, everything Kejriwal predicted is coming true.”
AAP leader Adil Khan pointed out that power cuts and unchecked private school policies are harming Delhi’s middle-class families. “During elections, we warned that the BJP’s rule would lead to suffering. Now, power outages have started, and private schools have been given a free hand to burden parents. The AAP demands an immediate rollback of the fee hikes,” he stated.
AAP leaders have vowed to stand with parents in their protests and urged the BJP-led Delhi government to intervene and prevent unjust fee hikes. The situation continues to escalate, with parents demanding urgent action against exploitative private schools.
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