Lawyer Challenges Denial of Education for Rohingya Children in the Supreme Court

Advocate Ashok Agarwal, on behalf of Social Jurist, filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court’s dismissal of a PIL seeking school admissions for Rohingya refugee children. The petition argues that denying education to these children is violates Articles 14, 21, and 21-A, and the RTE Act, 2009.

Despite the RTE Act guaranteeing free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14, refugee children face barriers like lack of Aadhaar cards and statutory benefits. Rohingyas face systematic exclusion classified as "illegal immigrants, unlike Afghan or Pakistani Hindu refugees, who are aided under the CAA.

UNHCR highlights education as a fundamental right, but political sensitivities hinder progress.