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5 Petitioner no.1, a registered society, established an unaided Primary English Medium School at Uran in the name of "Uran Education Society's English Medium School" (hereinafter referred to as "the School"). Most students studying in the school are from project affected families. As on date, the total strength of the School is 2220 students across pre-primary, primary and secondary sections.

6 Petitioner no.3, is a society of unaided schools registered under the provisions of the Societies Registration Act, 1860. It has about 200 members, which are all unaided schools. Its objects include educational 6 wp.2800.2013 J5.5.doc development in the area of unaided schools/institutions of education such as to create a representative forum for the managements of Unaided Schools/Institutions in Greater Mumbai/ Maharashtra State, to interact with the Boards of Education, Schools/ Colleges/ Universities, to upgrade the school system, to interact with the Government and other authorities, to improve the quality of education at all levels and obtain support for the financial viability of Unaided Schools/Institutions.

14 wp.2800.2013 J5.5.doc 15 Section 12 which is in Chapter IV of the Act deals with the responsibilities of the school for free and compulsory education. As the petitioners are private unaided school which fall under sub-clause (4) of clause (n) of Section 2, we are restricting our comments to only Section 12(1)(c). Under Section 12(1)(c), a school, which is an unaided school not receiving any kind of aid or grant to meet its expenses from the appropriate Government or the local authorities, shall admit in class I to the extent of at least 25% of the strength of that class children belonging to weaker section and disadvantaged group in the neighbourhood and provide free and compulsory elementary education till its completion. The Proviso to sub-

Sub-section (2) of Section 12 deals with reimbursement of the expenditure incurred by an unaided school not receiving any kind of aid or grants to meet the expenses. It provides that such a school, i.e., an unaided school not receiving any kind of aid or grant to meet its expenses from the 15 wp.2800.2013 J5.5.doc appropriate Government or the local authorities which imparts elementary education shall be reimbursed expenditure so incurred by it and the quantum of reimbursement. Sub-section (2) cannot be read to mean that reimbursement will be only for providing free and compulsory elementary education. The expression "...................................specified in sub-clause (iv) of clause (n) of Section (2) providing free and compulsory education as specified in clause (c) of Sub-section 1 ................" shall identifies the school and not the education for which reimbursement will be given.

53 When we examine the 2009 Act, we find that under Section 12(1)(c) read with Section 2(n)(iv) of the Act, an unaided school not receiving any kind of aid or grants to 1 (2014) 8 SCC 1 19 wp.2800.2013 J5.5.doc meet its expenses from the appropriate Government or the local authority is required to admit in class I, to the extent of at least twenty-five per cent of the strength of that class, children belonging to weaker section and disadvantaged group in the neighbourhood and provide free and compulsory elementary education till its completion. We further find that under Section 12(2) of the 2009 Act such a school shall be reimbursed expenditure so incurred by it to the extent of per-child expenditure incurred by the State, or the Actual amount charged from the child, whichever is less, in such manner as may be prescribed. Thus, ultimately it is the State which is funding the expenses of free and compulsory education of the children belonging to weaker sections and several groups in the neighbourhood, which are admitted to a private unaided school. These provisions of the 2009 Act, in our view, are for the purpose of providing free and compulsory education to children between the age group of 6 to 14 years and are consistent with the right under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, as interpreted by this Court in T.M.A. Pai Foundation (supra) and are meant to achieve the constitutional goals of equality of opportunity in elementary education to children of weaker sections and disadvantaged groups in our society. We, therefore, do not find any merit in the submissions made on behalf of the non-minority private schools that Article 21A of the Constitution and the 2009 Act violate their right under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution.