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An image of a circular regarding the “reimbursement of tuition fees to the Minority Students of Classes I to XII for 2020-21 and 2021-22,” issued by Delhi’s Directorate of Education, is being shared across social media.
Social media users are sharing the circular claiming that the Delhi government has directed private schools to refund school fees of Muslim students only, demanding that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal do the same for students from weaker economic backgrounds.
However, the claim is misleading.
As per the Delhi government’s website, the scheme applies to students belonging to Scheduled Tribes (ST), Scheduled Castes (SC), Other Backward Communities (OBC) and Minorities – which includes students from the Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Zoroastrian (Parsi) and Jain communities who attend government-recognised private schools.
CLAIM
The image of the circular with some highlighted sections is being shared to claim that the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Government has announced a scheme where students from the Muslim community would receive a full reimbursement for the school fees.
WHAT WE FOUND
First, we looked for reports on the scheme and found one by News18. The article discussed the Delhi government’s move directing private schools to reimburse tuition fees for students belonging to minority communities for academic years 2020-21 and 2021-22.
Next, we went to the Delhi’s Education Department website and carefully read through the circular in question. Here too, there was no mention of a specific religious community.
We then looked up “Reimbursement of Tuition fees to the Minority Students of Classes to XII” and were led to a document on the Delhi government’s Welfare of SC/ST website, which detailed the scheme in question.
It noted that the applicant’s family income could not exceed two lakh rupees per annum and should be a resident of Delhi for the past three years.
A caste certificate would be required for applicants from the SC, ST and OBC communities, while a declaration would be required by parents or guardians to show that “his Son/Daughter belongs to a particular Minority Community.”
The Delhi government website also provides details regarding welfare schemes for minority students, by the Government of India as well as the state government. Here, a similar scheme is mentioned for minority students attending public schools.
We, then, visited the Delhi Minorities Commission’s website, which noted that ‘Minorities’ referred to people from the Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist, Parsi, and Jain communities.
Delhi Minorities Chairperson Zakir Khan rubbished the claim while speaking to The Quint.
He elaborated that the Revenue Department handled schemes related to religious minorities, while the Social Welfare Ministry looked after the SC, ST, and OBC categories.
Clearly, the Delhi government has not directed private schools to reimburse tuition fees for students belonging only to the Muslim community. Students from the Sikh, Christian, Jain, Buddhist, and Zoroastrian communities attending private schools are also eligible to avail these benefits.
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