Daughter complains against father in domestic violence case

In what appears to be the first of its kind complaint under Domestic Violence Act, a 12-year-old girl has filed a complaint in a Pune court against her father alleging "mental and emotional violence".
       
Preeti (name changed on request), who is under joint care of divorced mother and father made the allegations of "psychological violence" against her father in a family court.

The matter has been deferred to July 2 as Preeti's father sought time to file reply to daughter's allegation.
       
Preeti filed the complaint after her father obtained a stay order from the family court on her moving from a boarding school in Tamil Nadu to Pune, where her mother lives. The girl wanted to move out of Tamil Nadu school as her sister had passed out this year and she felt lonely.

Asim Sarode, Preeti's lawyer, said the parents possess joint custody of the child in keeping with the terms of the compromise petition they filed in the court five years ago.

The lawyer alleged that Preeti's father had not paid school fees of the child on several occasions earlier and even violated other terms of the compromise petition.

Without informing the boarding school authorities, he had attempted to meet her in school. This amounts to "gross, mental, emotional and Psychological violence against her".

Preeti has asked the court to restrain her father from playing with her emotions to take revenge with her mother or by dragging her unnecessarily in fights with her mother.