PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Private Schools Regulatory Authority (PSRA) has requested the Peshawar High Court to reject the petition of a fourth-grade girl against her expulsion from a private school in Mardan insisting it has the exclusive authority under the law to decide a dispute between the school and its students.

It also disputed the claim of petitioner Ansa Khan that she was subjected to corporal punishment and claimed that a committee constituted by it for inquiring into the matter had found out those allegations as unsubstantiated.

In its comments filed by the managing director, a respondent, on the petition, the PSRA claimed that the plea was not maintainable and was liable to be dismissed.

The petitioner, who moved the high court through her mother Seema Gul, alleged that she was severely punished and humiliated by a teacher in the Mardan Model School and College and was even expelled.

PSRA seeks plea’s disposal saying probe dismisses student’s allegation

She requested the court to declare her expulsion by the school illegal and order her re-enrolment.

A high court bench will take up the case on Jan 12.

In the comments filed through Barrister Asadul Mulk, the PSRA said its senior officers came to know about the alleged incident through a news item and instantly ordered an inquiry to ascertain the facts.

It added that the findings of the inquiry committee was communicated to all relevant parties and the matter was closed.

The PSRA said that no review petition was filed against the said inquiry report by the petitioner or on her behalf by any other person.

It also said that the matter was never agitated before the authority by the petitioner and that the authority had conducted the inquiry into it on its own.

The authority contended that under Section 27 of the KPSRA Act, 2017, it had exclusive authority to adjudicate upon all kinds of matter and issues related to or concerning private schools and provide relief in appropriate cases.

It was added that the constitutional jurisdiction of the high court had been invoked by the petitioner without availing the alternate statutory remedy available to her.

The authority also submitted the inquiry report along with comments declaring that the allegations of corporal punishment could not be established as neither any FIR of the matter was registered by the police nor was there any medical proof of corporal punishment available on record.

The PSRA said that the girl student had never been expelled by the school and instead, she remained absent from the school on her own since Sept 27, 2021.

According to the report, the main bone of contention appeared to be an amount of Rs40,200 outstanding against the petitioner’s sister, who had left the school without clearing dues and obtaining the school leaving certificate.

However, the inquiry committee declared that the behaviour of the school’s academic coordinator was inappropriate as she had misbehaved and intimidated the mother and uncle of the schoolgirl and even she was unresponsive towards the committee.

Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2021