Father can't be absolved of responsibilities to meet son's education expenses after he turns 18: Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court has ruled that a father cannot refuse to pay for his son's education merely because he has attained the age of majority. While dismissing a plea by a man seeking to absolve himself from paying for his son's education after the age of 18 years, the high court said the father must carry the financial burden of making certain that his children are capable of attaining a position in society wherein they can sufficiently maintain themselves. READ: SC directs high courts to make e-filing of cases mandatory in certain categories "The father cannot be absolved of all responsibilities to meet the education expenses of his son because the son may have attained the age of majority, but may not be financially independent and could be incapable of sustaining himself. A father has an equal duty to provide for his children and there cannot be a situation wherein it is only the mother who has to bear the burden of expenses for raising and educating the children,” it said, adding that it cannot shut its eyes to the reality that simply attaining a majority does not translate into the understanding that the major son is earning sufficiently.