Lens on minority schools in Pune over 51% rule

PUNE: Deputy director of education (Pune division) Ganpat More has instructed education officers in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad municipal corporations and Pune Zilla Parishad to verify whether schools granted minority status are implementing the mandatory quota of having 51% members of the management and students from their respective minority communities.

The letter has sought a detailed inquiry and action against institutions found violating the conditions attached to minority status, and to submit a report.


Dhananjay Dalvi, president of MNS youth wing in Pune said that his letter on Feb 23, 2026 to More sought a survey after having come across schools which did not fulfill the criteria yet had the minority status which allowed them to bypass the 25% free seats stipulation under Right to Education Act.

"The problem is not just the new schools that have got the minority tag. Some older ones do not follow the norms too and we want to expose this fraud. If all schools start claiming minority status, only govt schools will be left for poor students to enroll under RTE which is free. Moreover, genuine schools with a minority tag must be protected and fraudulent ones should be exposed," Dalvi added.

More reiterated that it had come to his notice that some schools use the minority tag to bypass govt rules.

"Schools can get such a status on linguistic grounds or religious grounds. Marathi is the majority language and Hindi, Kannada and Gujarati and others are minority languages. Similarly, Jains, Muslims and Christians are minority communities. According to rules, to get this status, at least 51% people in the school management must be of the same minority. Even among students, a minimum of 51% of the seats must be for students who belong to the minority," he added.