Rehan Khan
On 7th October, the Kerala High Court ruled that insisting on school uniforms does not amount to “cruelty against children” under Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 (JJ Act). This clarification came during the judgment in a case filed against the principal of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan School, Thrissur, who was accused of cruelty for reprimanding a student not wearing a uniform during vacation.
Justice A Badharudeen emphasized that Section 75 of the JJ Act addresses acts that cause unnecessary mental or physical suffering to children. However, requiring students to wear uniforms is a standard disciplinary measure that does not fall under this category. He observed, “When a teacher insists for wearing uniform, on seeing a student, who reached the school in colour dress, the same is intended for the purpose of maintaining the discipline of the school in the matter of uniform dress code, and the same, in no way, could be held as an act, which would cause unnecessary mental or physical suffering to the child, so as to attract the offence under Section 75 of the JJ Act.”
The case originated when an eighth-grade student, who visited the school to collect her academic results during vacation, was not wearing her uniform. The principal reprimanded the student for her attire and instructed her to return home and change into her uniform. Additionally, the principal made comments on the student’s physique, which led to a criminal case being filed against her under Section 75 of the JJ Act.
The principal subsequently approached the High Court to quash the case, arguing that the incident was not an offense under the JJ Act. The counsel for the principal further contended that the complaint had been lodged in retaliation. The student’s mother, an employee at the same school, had recently been issued a memo for negligence in her duties, which allegedly provoked the complaint.
After reviewing the records, the Court found no prima facie case of cruelty under the JJ Act and quashed the case. The Court warned against interpreting routine disciplinary actions as cruelty, stating that such misinterpretations could harm school discipline. “If, as part of maintenance of the discipline of the school when wearing of uniform dress is made mandatory, it is the duty of the students to obey the same, so as to keep the dignity and discipline of the school to impart education effectively. If such acts are given the colour of an offence under Section 75 of the JJ Act, the discipline of the school would become topsy-turvy and the same would disdainfully affect the discipline and the regiment of the school,” the Court ruled.
Case Title: Sindhu Sivadas vs. State of Kerela
Case Number: Crl. M C No. 2948 Of 2022
Bench: Justice A. Badharudeen