New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has upheld the Centre's decision to dissolve the Maulana Azad Education Foundation (MAEF), which was established in 1989 with the aim of promoting education among educationally backward minorities.
A bench led by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan dismissed the PIL filed by Syeda Syedain Hameed, John Dayal, and Daya Singh challenging the dissolution of the Maulana Azad Education Foundation. The court stated that the decision to dissolve the foundation was well-considered and not influenced by the objections raised by the petitioners.
The bench, which also included Justice Mini Pushkarna, emphasized that the decision to dissolve MAEF was made by the General Assembly after thorough deliberations, and the court found no procedural flaws in this decision-making process. Consequently, the court rejected the petition, citing lack of merit.
The petitioners had initially approached the High Court earlier in the year to challenge the Minority Affairs Ministry's order dated February 7. The central government defended its decision, arguing that with the ministry now overseeing schemes for the benefit of minorities, the Maulana Azad Education Foundation had become redundant.
In their PIL, the petitioners contended that the ministry's order deprived deserving students, particularly girls, of accessing the benefits of MAEF schemes. They criticized the sudden, opaque, and arbitrary nature of the decision to dismantle an institution that had been operational for nearly four decades, arguing that it would adversely affect people's lives. They characterized the decision as malicious, arbitrary, and lacking jurisdiction.
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