Amid a legal challenge over the proposed initiation of a seven-year-old girl into Jain monkhood, the Surat Family Court directed that the child will not take part in the Diksha ceremony scheduled in February next year.
The court directed the mother to give an undertaking that the child would not take part in the Diksha ceremony scheduled between February 4 and 8, 2026, according to a report.
The mother submitted an affidavit stating that the Diksha ceremony had been put on hold for the time being. The development came during the hearing of the father’s custody plea involving his two children aged seven and five.
The father had approached the family court seeking custody of the children from his estranged wife. The couple has been living separately for over a year.
On Monday, the 37-year-old mother filed an affidavit as directed by the court. She said that the Diksha ceremony, earlier planned from February 2 to February 8, 2026, had been set aside temporarily.
During arguments, the mother submitted that the religious initiation process had been carried out with the father’s consent. She also placed material before the court showing the father’s presence at meetings with the spiritual leader who was preparing the child for Diksha.
The mother said the father had attended meetings with the Jain spiritual leader. She said the Diksha process was started with his knowledge. She said the ceremony was now paused.
Advocate Samapti Mehta, representing the father, told the media that the father’s consent was wrongly portrayed. She said the photographs cited were misleading. She said the father was forced to attend the meeting after the mother threatened divorce proceedings. She added that the father was also told that Diksha could be initiated without his consent.
Mehta said the father attended the meeting only as a concerned parent. She said the father opposed Diksha at such a young age and submitted before the court that the child’s welfare was central to the case.
She said the mother was living separately with the children and had her own reasons for initiating the child into religious life. She added that the father’s position was that the child should be allowed to grow up and take an informed decision later.
The proposed Diksha ceremony was to be held in Borivali, Mumbai, between February 4 and 8, 2026. It was to take place in the presence of Jain monks. About 60 people were expected to take Diksha, with the seven-year-old being the youngest.
Speaking to mediapersons outside the family court, the mother said the process had been initiated with the father’s knowledge. She said that if the father had objections, he should have met the spiritual leader. She said approaching the court and turning the matter public was unfortunate.
The father also spoke to the media after the hearing. He said he was compelled to approach the court after threats from the wife’s family. He said he respected the practice of Diksha and was not opposed to it in principle. He said his concern was that his daughter should be allowed to grow up and make her own choice.
He also said that public recognition should not come at the cost of his child’s innocence.
The father said he was threatened not to object. He said he honours Diksha. He said his daughter should decide when she is older.
The family court will hear the custody matter again on January 2.
The father had moved the Surat Family Court on December 10 under the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890. He sought custody of the minor child and appointment as her legal guardian. He stated that the mother had decided to initiate the child into Jain monkhood without his consent.
Family Court Judge SV Mansuri had issued notice to the mother and sought her reply on Monday.
As per the affidavit filed by the mother before the Oath Commissioner, the couple married in September 2012. They have two children aged seven and five. The father stated in his plea that the mother left the matrimonial home in April 2024 following a disagreement over the Diksha issue and moved to her parents’ residence.
Also Read: Jain Father Moves Surat Court To Block Seven-Year-Old Daughter’s Bal Diksha, Seeks Full Custody https://www.vibesofindia.com/jain-father-moves-surat-court-to-block-seven-year-old-daughters-bal-diksha-seeks-full-custody/
