Two days after the Punjab government unveiled a proposed regulatory framework to cap annual fee increases of private schools at five per cent, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal, on Friday, said the "arbitrariness of private schools should now come to a halt".
The proposed legislation in Punjab will mandate refunds of excess fees collected from parents wherever schools breached the annual limit in the past three years and prescribe stringent penalties that can ultimately lead to cancellation of a school’s recognition.
In a video posted on X, Kejriwal said: "Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann recently announced that a law will soon be implemented in Punjab under which no private school will be able to increase fees to more than five per cent in a year, which includes all kinds of fees like library, development etc."
"The most important thing is all those schools which have increased more than 15 per cent of their fees in the last three years will have to refund the excess amount," he added. Giving an example, Kejriwal said: "If any school has increased 50 per cent fees in the last three years, it has to refund 35 per cent."
He claimed that such a law is being implemented for the first time in the history of India's education system. "Have you ever heard a private school refunding your fees back to your bank account?" he asked. "Earlier, when we (AAP) had the government in Delhi, we had refunded the fees of students.
The same thing is now taking place in Punjab," he mentioned while emphasising that every parent dreams of providing quality education to their kids. Highlighting that the quality of education is improving in Punjab's government schools, he cited that the state has topped the NITI Aayog’s School Education Quality Report 2026.
"Punjab surpassed even Kerala," he remarked. Maintaining that all private schools are not bad, Kejriwal said: "Certain private schools charge arbitrary fees regarding various aspects of the schools, which become a burden on parents. This is a big step which will come as a relief for both parents and students."
"I think the arbitrariness of private schools across the country should now come to a halt," he asserted. Further, the AAP chief urged for the implementation of a similar law across the country.