LoP Atishi writes CM Rekha Gupta demanding immediate stop of increased fees & inquiry into undue influence of Bharat Arora

In a letter to Delhi CM Rekha Gupta, Leader of Opposition (LoP) and former CM, Atishi, has pointed out the BJP-led government of reviving the education mafia in the national capital by facilitating unchecked private school fee hikes. Atishi has demanded an immediate halt to the proposed policy allowing annual 10% fee increases without mandatory audits, warning that such a move will impose a massive financial burden on Delhi’s parents.

She also called for a full-scale investigation into the alleged undue influence of Bharat Arora—seen as a representative of private school lobbies—within the Education Ministry and the Directorate of Education (DoE). “If this anti-parent, pro-mafia agenda is pushed through, we will be forced to take to the streets with parents in protest,” Atishi declared, vowing to resist what she described as a dangerous rollback of the AAP-era crackdown on profiteering in education.

Sharing a clip in which parents could be seen protesting against fee hikes, senior AAP leader and former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia: “Look at this…. the education mafia in Delhi has become so daring that small innocent children are being tortured by making them sit outside the classroom. During the ten years that Arvind Kejriwal was the Chief Minister, no one had the courage to do such a daring act. If Arvind Kejriwal government was in power today, such school managers who torture innocent children in this manner would have been sent to jail within 24 hours.”

In the letter to CM Rekha Gupta, Delhi Assembly LoP and former CM Atishi stated, “As you must be aware that many private schools in Delhi have increased their school fees by many folds in the last couple of months burning a hole in the pockets of hapless middle-class parents living in the national capital. During the last ten years when Aam Aadmi Party Government under the leadership of Shri Arvind Kejriwal was in power, we had always prioritized and safeguarded the interest of parents in Delhi.

The Delhi Assembly LoP noted, “However, as soon as the new Government took over in the month of February, many private schools have not only increased their fees substantially but has also started isolating and humiliating children whose parents are unable to bear the sudden escalation in fees.”

Atishi further added, “We were surprised at first when this news of protest by parents outside schools started pouring in from all across Delhi, as to why such things were happening all of a sudden. We had successfully curbed education mafia in the national capital during our tenure, all that was needed was a strong will. When we studied the root cause of this, we came across a prominent name, Mr. Bharat Arora, who has always fought legal battles for increasing fees of private schools.”

She wrote, “Mr. Bharat Arora, President of Action Committee of Unaided Private Schools, has always been an active voice against the Delhi Government and has filed court cases in favour of increasing fees of private schools in Delhi. On further scrutiny, we came to know that this person is not only a member of BJP Delhi State Executive but also leads the BJP Teachers’ Cell.”

“This person had actively campaigned for the BJP during the assembly elections in Delhi. His social media posts show that Mr. Bharat Arora campaigned for you, in your constituency Shalimar Bagh. Therefore, this raises a serious question – is there a direct collusion between the BJP and Sh. Bharat Arora that has led to this increase in fees after elections?” asked Atishi.

The Delhi Assembly LoP noted, “It has also come to our knowledge that a meeting was held between the current Education Minister of Delhi Mr. Ashish Sood and private school representatives on April 6th, 2025. During this meeting private schools were assured that they would be allowed to raise fees once the protests of parents and Aam Aadmi Party died down.”

“It was apparently stated that the Delhi Government will bring a notification allowing 10% increase in school fees every year, without any audits. Since, Mr. Ashish Sood is a very senior minister in your cabinet, we can only assume that this decision has your green signal as well. If this notification is issued, this will have a huge financial impact on parents who send their children to these schools,” she added.

The Delhi Assembly LoP stated, “Therefore, if this happens, as a responsible opposition we will be forced to take to the streets of Delhi along with the parents. In order to instill confidence in parents of Delhi, we humbly request you to:

1.⁠ ⁠Immediately issue an order for schools to stop charging the increased fees

2.⁠ ⁠Reimburse parents who have already paid the revised fees.

3.⁠ ⁠Order immediate audit of the accounts of all private schools who wish to increase their fees. No school to be allowed any fee hike without accounts being audited

4.⁠ ⁠Order an investigation into any undue influence of Sh. Bharat Arora in the Education Ministry or the Directorate of Education, that helps private schools increase their fees.”

Sharing the letter on her ‘X’ handle, Delhi Assembly LoP Atishi stated: “The reason behind the uncontrolled fee hike in Delhi is the collusion between private schools and BJP. The mastermind behind this conspiracy is Shri Bharat Arora. He is the chairman of the private schools’ body—’Action Committee for Private Schools’, and has been fighting for fee hikes for years. He is a BJP functionary, and was prominently involved in Rekha Gupta ji’s election campaign. I have written a letter to CM Rekha Gupta ji demanding immediate stoppage of the increased fees. I have also demanded an inquiry into the undue influence of Shri Bharat Arora ji.”