15-yr-old moves HC to get her Class X certs from parents
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The parents had secured her admission in Class 11 at a school in Patan, but she was reluctant to join them, preferring to stay with her maternal grandparents who had obtained provisional admission for her at a school in Vadodara.
In her petition, the girl stated that her parents separated over 13 years ago, and she, her mother and maternal grandparents had been living together. Her father neither visited her nor acknowledged her birth.
After the prolonged separation, her parents divorced in 2018. However, during the Covid-19 lockdown, the parents resumed communication and reunited.
The parents began living together in Patan, leaving the girl who continued to be raised by her grandparents in Vadodara. The elderly citizens also bore her educational expenses.
According to the petition, after the girl completed Class 10, her parents obtained her marksheet and leaving certificates and insisted she join them.
The mother even secured her admission at a school in Patan. However, the girl insisted on living with her grandparents and continuing her studies in Vadodara.
Her grandparents approached the Child Welfare Committee in Vadodara to secure her testimonials from her parents after her mother left them. They managed to obtain duplicates of her education certificates and secured provisional admission for her in Class 11 at a Vadodara school.
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However, the school authorities insisted on the original documents to finalise her admission and eventually cancelled it.
She approached the high court through advocate Deepmala Desai, who submitted that despite the girl's repeated requests and emotional pleas, the parents refused to return her documents essential for continuing her education. As she was unable to submit the original documents, the school was constrained to cancel her admission, causing severe disruption in her education, and mental trauma.
The girl has complained of violation of her fundamental right to education and the right to live with dignity.
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