GHPS is minority institution: Sikh body

The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) has claimed that the six pay commission's recommendations did not apply to educational institutions being run by it, as they are minority establishments. HT reports.

The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) has claimed that the six pay commission's recommendations did not apply to educational institutions being run by it, as they are minority establishments.

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The declaration by the Sikh body came in response to a plea before the Delhi High Court by a group of teaching and non-teaching staff of the Vasant Vihar and India Gate branches of the Guru Harkrishan Public School. The staff are seeking pay scale as per the recommendations of the sixth pay panel.

In response to the plea, the DSGMC said that institutions under its control were declared minority education institutions pursuant to July 2011 order passed by the National Commission for Minority Educational Institution.

However, DSGMC's stand before the high court is contrary to its assurance given to Directorate of Education (DoE) to pay the teachers as per the sixth pay commission's recommendations in a year's time. DSGMC president Paramjit Singh Sarna had given this assurance in a letter written to the DoE on January 4, 2012.

In its response to the petition by GHPS staff, the directorate has placed a copy of Sarna's letter before the HC. The management has, however, drawn support from the Lieutenant Governor's (LG) February 4, 2012 order that set aside DoE's January 25, 2012 order, withdrawing recognition of GHPS's Hari Nagar branch. The LG had accepted DSGMC's contention that the school was an unaided minority institution and financial conditionality could not be imposed on it.

The petitioners have urged the court to direct the DSGMC management to implement the sixth pay commission's report, arguing that Section 10 of the Delhi State Education Act, 1973, made it mandatory for all aided and unaided schools, irrespective of the category, to implement the pay panel's report. According to the petitioners, the scheme of management of the schools managed by DSGMC does not mention categorically that the institutions would cater to students beloging to the Sikh community only.

Intriguingly, the GHPS management had implemented the fifth pay commission's report but this time it had refused to pay the new pay scales, the petitioners had submitted.

The matter is scheduled to come up for further hearing on August 17.