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The Rekha Gupta-led Delhi government on February 2 told the Supreme Court that it will not enforce the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Act, 2025, in the 2025–26 academic year, offering immediate relief to private schools and anxious parents. The move follows sharp judicial scrutiny over the timing of the law’s rollout, with the apex court flagging concerns that implementing a new fee regime mid-session would be impractical and disruptive. The government has now redrawn the timeline, opting for a phased implementation beginning next academic year, while freezing school fees at current levels for the ongoing session.

The submission was made by Additional Solicitor General S V Raju before a bench comprising P S Narasimha and Alok Aradhe. The court was hearing a batch of petitions filed by private schools seeking a stay on the implementation of the new fee regulation law.

Recording the statement, the bench observed that “wisdom appears to have prevailed” and disposed of the appeals, noting that since the legal regime will not be implemented in 2025–26, no further orders were required at this stage. However, the court clarified that all legal questions surrounding the Act remain open and can be pursued before the Delhi High Court.

The fee regulation Act was notified on December 10, 2025, long after schools had already fixed their fees for the 2025–26 academic year. Earlier rules required private schools to set up school-level fee regulation committees by July 15 - a deadline that had already passed.

During an earlier hearing on January 19, the Supreme Court had described the government’s attempt to enforce the law mid-session as “unviable”, questioning the hurry in rolling out a system that required multiple layers of administrative preparation.

Acknowledging this timing mismatch, the Delhi government issued a gazette notification on February 1, formally deferring enforcement and laying out a revised, phase-wise roadmap.

As part of the interim arrangement, school fees for the 2025–26 academic year have effectively been frozen. Private schools have been directed not to charge any amount beyond what they were collecting as of April 1, 2025.

The notification makes it clear that no fresh fee hike is permitted during the current academic year. Any fee increase already imposed will remain subject to scrutiny, depending on the final outcome of petitions pending before the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court.

While the law itself is on hold for this year, the government has retained safeguards against arbitrary fee increases. Schools found charging exorbitant or unauthorised fees could face penalties ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. If schools don’t refund excess fees on time, penalties will double after 20 days and triple after 40 days.

Under the revised plan, all private schools must constitute School-Level Fee Regulation Committees within 10 days of the February 1 notification, even though these committees will not revise fees for the current academic year.

Once constituted, school managements will have 14 days to submit proposed fee structures - not for 2025–26, but for a three-year block beginning 2026–27. The Delhi government has maintained that the law is intended to introduce transparency and predictability, with fees fixed in advance for blocks of three years to prevent recurring disputes.

Although the Supreme Court has closed the immediate proceedings, the constitutional validity of the Act remains under challenge before the Delhi High Court. Private schools have been given liberty to seek early hearings, and the apex court has made it clear that all questions of law are still open.