Privatisation, Neoliberalism, and the Right to Education in Contemporary India: Implications for Marginalised Communities

Abstract

The Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, represents a landmark shift in India’s education policy, embedding elementary education within a rights-based framework to advance social equity. However, more than a decade after its implementation, persistent disparities among marginalised communities raise critical questions about the relationship between legal entitlement and substantive equality. This paper interrogates the extent to which the RTE Act has translated its normative commitment to equity into tangible outcomes for historically disadvantaged groups, including Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities, and economically weaker sections. Illustrating a public administration and social justice framework, the study situates the RTE Act within broader debates on state capacity, governance deficits, and policy implementation gaps. It integrates theoretical insights from Amartya Sen’s capability approach, Rawlsian justice, and Bourdieu’s theory of social reproduction to examine how structural inequalities mediate access to, and experiences of, schooling. Methodologically, the paper adopts a qualitative-analytical approach, combining policy analysis with secondary data and existing empirical studies to evaluate both institutional design and ground-level realities. Studies suggest that while the RTE Act has expanded formal access to education, it has been less effective in addressing deep-rooted socio-economic and cultural barriers, resulting in what may be termed “procedural inclusion without substantive equity.” Implementation challenges, such as uneven state capacity, weak accountability mechanisms, and persistent exclusionary practices, have constrained the policy's transformative potential. The study argues that the gap between legal mandate and social reality reflects not merely administrative shortcomings but the structural limits of rights-based approaches in deeply stratified societies. The paper contributes to the study by offering a conceptually integrated and critically grounded analysis of education policy in India, highlighting the need to move beyond access-centric frameworks toward equity-oriented, context-sensitive governance reforms. It also provides broader insights for Global South contexts where rights-based education policies confront entrenched inequalities.