The High Court on Tuesday said that education had become a luxury and child labour a compulsory activity for children in the State.
These observations were made by the bench following a submission made by the counsel representing the Centre for Law and Policy Research Trust that the High Court of Punjab and Haryana had passed an order to ban child labour not just in hazardous industries, but in all sectors.
Hearing a suo motu PIL petition on effective implementation of the Right to Education Act and to bring back the children who had dropped out from schools, a division bench comprising Chief Justice D H Waghela and Justice B V Nagarathna directed the labour department to ensure that the provisions of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, are enforced effectively.
The government counsel submitted that two co-ordination meetings have been held, wherein suggestions from the members have been taken. The counsel said that enrolment of children (those who had dropped out of school) will begin from May 20 and will continue till the second week of June. The bench directed the government to ensure that all children, including those belonging to the lower strata of society and those in rural areas, are included for enrolment (in the age group of 6 to14 years).
Application rejected
The High Court has rejected an interim appeal filed by Bidar South MLA Ashok Kheny, seeking the court’s direction to dismiss an election petition filed by T J Abraham, who had contended that Kheny is not an Indian citizen. Abraham, the party-in-person, has contended that Kheny’s name does not appear in the voters’ list and that he is a US citizen.
Mahyco’s plea disposed of
The High Court has disposed of a petition by Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company Ltd (Mahyco), which had questioned the State government’s order banning the company’s Bt cotton hybrid seeds and blacklisting the company, following the failure of Bt cotton in seven districts.
Justice C R Kumaraswamy, disposing of the petition, directed the government to consider its (government’s) order as a show-cause notice and instructed Mahyco to give a fresh representation to the Agriculture department in five days.
Orders reserved
The High Court has reserved orders with regard to an interim appeal filed by Aarthi Rao, an NRI, to implead in the sexual harassment petition against Swami Nityananda.
Lenin, the driver in Nityananda’s Bidadi ashram, had filed the petition before the High Court about how Nityananda had sexually harassed many women in his ashram and sought the court’s direction in the matter. Aarthi, one of Nityananda’s disciples, filed an interim appeal saying that she too was sexually harassed.
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