Pro Bono Initiative: right to education for the underprivileged

The Lahore High Court has issued notice in relation to a petition filed under Article 199 of the Constitution on behalf of underprivileged schoolchildren, as part of Ashtar Ali & Rahim’s Pro Bono Initiative.

The petition challenges administrative notifications issued by the Government of Punjab and the School Education Department making a child’s education in public-private partnership schools dependent on registration under NADRA and the obtainment of a B-form. These schools provide free education in remote and rural areas of Punjab, where an estimated 11.7 million children remain out of school, and, according to UNICEF, 24.7% of children do not possess a B-form.

Our associate, Hassan Kamal Wattoo, argued that the enforcement of this bureaucratic hurdle was violative of Article 25A of the Constitution; that it served to punish those most in need of education and least able to clear documentation requirements, i.e., children in rural areas; and that the constitutional mandate guaranteeing the right to free and compulsory education for all children between the ages of five and sixteen had to be honoured.

The Court has issued notice to the respondents and relisted the matter for further hearing.