The Madras High Court Bench here has ruled that a college cannot expel a girl student just because she married without the consent of her father.
Passing the order, Justice N Kirubakaran directed the Dr Sivanthiadithanar college of Engineering at Tiruchendur to allow petitioner C Saraswathi (19), a first year B.Tech (IT) student to continue her education.
The judge said the petitioner was a major and had the right to choose her life partner. The action of the college was not acceptable, he said and directed the college to admit her and not harass her with regard to her marriage.
The petitioner said she was prevented from attending the second semester classes based on a complaint from her father. Besides he was not able to maintain the family and her aunt had taken care of her. On her aunt's request, she married her son, a solider in the Army, on April 10 2013.
Saraswathi contended that it is against this background and the complaint from her father that the college refused to receive the exam fee for the second semester and did not allow her to attend classes. They had obtained her signature by force and issued her transfer certificate.
As the college refused to heed her representation to allow her to continue the studies, she approached the court.
