High Court Orders Formation of Academic Tribunal for All Private School Teachers

The High Court has directed the formation of an Academic Tribunal in every district of Madhya Pradesh to address the issues faced by teachers of private educational institutions. The court has also asked the state government to submit a progress report within four weeks. The next hearing in the matter is scheduled for January 14, 2026. This tribunal will hear and resolve teachers’ grievances.

The order came after a public interest litigation was filed before the Gwalior bench of the High Court, highlighting the problems faced by private school teachers. The petition demanded the formation of an Academic Tribunal (Private Schools Tribunal MP) in each district, as per the Supreme Court judgment in ‘TMA Pai Foundation vs. State of Karnataka (2002)’. The petitioner argued that such tribunals would enable quicker resolution of teachers’ grievances.

The petitioner also cited the example of the Haryana government, which recently issued a notification on September 8, 2025, authorizing district and sessions judges to hear appeals of employees of aided and unaided technical education institutions. A similar system was requested for Madhya Pradesh as well.

During the hearing, the state government informed the High Court about the ongoing preparations. The Additional Advocate General stated that an SOP/mechanism had been prepared by the Law Department on November 12 and sent to the Registrar General (State SOP Preparation – Private Schools Tribunal MP). Further action is underway based on this document.

The High Court stated that until a complete tribunal system is established at the state level, district and sessions judges may be authorized as interim tribunals to hear appeals.