Supreme Court Fines NGO ₹1 Lakh for PIL to Reopen RTE Exemption for Minority Schools

Overview

• A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan dismissed the Article 32 petition, calling it the “grossest abuse of process.”
• The Court held that Supreme Court judgments cannot be challenged via writ petitions and cautioned lawyers against advising such filings.
• The NGO United Voice for Education Forum sought to bring minority institutions under Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act and to create an expert panel to balance Articles 21A and 30.
• The bench imposed a ₹1 lakh cost payable to the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee and refused the petitioner’s attempt to withdraw the case.
• The dismissal addressed procedure only, with the merits left to a separate referral by Justices Dipankar Datta and Manmohan for potential hearing by a larger bench.