Pune: In a major relief to the Sinhgad Technical Education Society, the Bombay High Court has stayed the Education Department’s action to cancel the recognition of 13 schools run by the institution over prolonged delays in teachers salaries and disruption of academic activities. The interim relief was granted during a hearing on Friday, providing temporary respite to the schools and their students.
Education Department To Follow Further Court Orders
Deputy Director of Education, Machhindranath Kadam, confirmed the development, stating that the department would take further action in accordance with the court’s subsequent orders.
The Education Department had initiated proceedings to cancel the recognition of the 13 schools after inspections revealed that teachers had not received their salaries for several months. Protesting against the non-payment of salaries, teachers had stopped teaching, resulting in disruption of regular classes and affecting students’ academic progress.
Education Department Held Hearing On July 20
A hearing in the matter was held on July 20, 2026, before the then Deputy Director of Education, during which representatives of the institution and education department officials presented their respective arguments. Considering the prolonged non-payment of teachers salaries, the suspension of teaching activities and the academic losses suffered by students, the department decided to cancel the recognition of the schools.
Meanwhile, the institution had cited financial difficulties and claimed that the government owed it approximately Rs 10.5 crore in pending Right to Education (RTE) fee reimbursements for the period between 2017 and 2026. The management maintained that the release of these dues would help it clear the pending salaries of teachers.
To prevent students from suffering further academic losses, the Education Department had also directed that students from the affected schools be accommodated in other schools if their recognition was cancelled.
However, with the High Court staying the derecognition proceedings, the proposed action has been put on hold for now. The interim order provides relief to the institution, while the future course of action will depend on further judicial directions.
Machhindranath Kadam, Deputy Director of Education said, “The Education Department had initiated action to cancel the recognition of a total of 13 schools run by the Sinhgad institution. However, the High Court has directed a stay on this action. A decision on further proceedings will be taken in accordance with the subsequent orders of the court.”
