Supreme Court issues notice to Centre in Tamil Nadu’s RTE funding battle
The Supreme Court has stepped into a significant financial dispute between the Tamil Nadu government and the central government regarding the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta has issued a formal notice to the central government, directing it to respond within four weeks to Tamil Nadu’s Special Leave Petition (SLP) challenging a Madras High Court order.
The petition addresses the critical question of financial responsibility for funding education under the RTE Act, which reserves 25% of private school seats for economically disadvantaged students.
The legal proceedings began when Senior Advocate P Wilson, representing the State of Tamil Nadu, presented arguments before the apex court.
Wilson contended that the Madras High Court had erred in its interpretation of financial responsibilities under the education act, particularly in its ruling that placed primary financial obligation solely on the state government for the 2025-2026 academic year.
The Supreme Court’s intervention comes at a crucial time when admissions for the current academic year under the RTE quota have not yet commenced, potentially affecting thousands of underprivileged students across Tamil Nadu.