The Karnataka High Court has ruled that a parent’s obligation to fund their child’s education does not expire when the child reaches adulthood, dismissing a father’s petition challenging an order to pay for his daughter’s postgraduate medical studies.
In an order dated July 17, Justice H P Sandesh rejected the father’s revision petition and upheld lower court decisions. The court determined that Section 20(d) of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, allows courts to order a respondent to cover educational expenses for both an aggrieved person and their children, in addition to standard maintenance. Justice Sandesh observed that the father’s financial records clearly demonstrated his ability to pay.
The legal dispute arose after the daughter petitioned a trial court to order her father to pay Rs 16 lakh for her first-year fees and expenses for an MD in Dermatology at Fr. Muller’s Institute of Medical Education and Research in Mangalore. She had qualified through the NEET PG examination with a rank of 11,722, securing admission through the Karnataka Examination Authority at an annual fee of Rs 13.87 lakh, down from the standard private rate of Rs 75 lakh.
Financial Dispute And Grandfather’s Loan
Representing the daughter, advocate Ajay Prabhu M stated that due to the urgency of the admission deadline, she had borrowed Rs 13.87 lakh from her grandfather to secure her seat. The requested Rs 16 lakh was intended to repay her grandfather and cover an additional Rs 1.5 lakh in remaining educational costs.
The father’s counsel, S Balakrishnan, opposed the application, characterizing the legal action as an attempt to harass his client and extract money. He argued that the daughter had not secured a strong rank, possessed sufficient funds of her own, and would receive a monthly stipend of Rs 60,000 that could cover her daily expenses. He also disputed the claim that her grandfather had the financial means to provide a Rs 14 lakh loan and stated that the father was facing personal financial and mental health challenges.
Court Findings And Parental Obligations
Both the trial court and a subsequent appellate court rejected the father’s assertions. The trial court verified the daughter’s academic rank, her admission, and financial records confirming that her grandfather had the capacity to transfer, and had indeed transferred, Rs 14 lakh.
In upholding the trial court’s order, the appellate court noted that a postgraduate degree is an essential milestone in a doctor’s career. It directed the father to pay the Rs 16 lakh, pointing out that neither the daughter nor her mother had any independent source of income.
In its final ruling, the High Court noted that the parents were living together without differences when they initially enrolled their daughter in her MBBS program. Consequently, the father could not now refuse to cover her postgraduate expenses. Justice Sandesh emphasized that under the Domestic Violence Act, economic abuse includes depriving an individual of financial resources to which they are entitled by law or custom, adding that parents worldwide hold a moral obligation to provide basic amenities, healthcare, and education to their children.
