Friday, June 26, 2009

DPS Society expels Salman Khurshid

New Delhi, September 2 The Delhi Public School Society has expelled from its membership Senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid after he allegedly raised objections against the functioning of the society’s management, which runs 130 schools in the country.
The leader, who was also the president of the ‘non-profit organisation’, has decided to go court against the move, which came after Khurshid spoke up against the “illegal collection of money” from many of its schools. The expulsion came after Khurshid wrote a letter to the 119 schools affiliated with the DPS asking them to demand that they be made full-time members of the Delhi Public School Society.

Khurshid was external affairs minister in the Narasimha Rao-led government and served as the President of the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee.

He has alleged that the DPS Society is illegally collecting money from schools in the name of licence fee and signing fee, which is against of the norms of the Delhi Education Department and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).

Khurshid was served the notice for expulsion after a meeting of the management committee of the DPS Society on August 28, which said the Congress leader has no “sympathies and belief in (its) objectives”.

He has alleged that the management had a problem with him ever since he wrote letters to the affiliated schools asking them to demand amendment in the constitution of the society enabling them to become fulltime members.

“They have a right to be part of the DPS Society,” he said. In the August 28 meeting, Kurshid claimed, he was told that he should not have written to the schools in this regard.

Apart from 11 schools owned by the society, 119 schools, owned by various other societies, have been given affiliation.

The society collects Rs five lakh from these schools every year. Khurshid has alleged that the Society was planning to increase the amount. “Now they want to increase Rs five lakh to Rs 25 lakh. I spoke up against the proposal but a majority of my colleagues were not willing to listen,” Khurshid said.

“DPS is exempted from paying income tax. It is not entitled to do business.”

He said he would approach the Delhi Government and the CBSE asking them to take immediate steps soon.

The Congress leader had first become a member of DPS Society in 1984 and its president in 1993.

Ashok Chandra, the Chairman of the society, did not deny the move but refused to comment on the matter.
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/DPS-Society-expels-Salman-Khurshid/356688/

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