Kathmandu, January 25:

The Supreme Court today quashed a habeas corpus petition upholding the custody of a minor girl by Maiti Nepal, an NGO working for the welfare of children and women.

A division bench of Justices Bala Ram KC and Top Bahadur Magar quashed the petition filed by Kul Bahadur Thapa, father of Usha Thapa, who is under the guardianship of Maiti Nepal.

The bench, however, directed Maiti Nepal to respect the rights of the child to let her meet her father from time to time and to ensure her right to education.

Maiti Nepal had taken custody of the girl last year after she became a crime victim. Challenging the custody, her father had moved the apex court seeking its order to release her from what he called unlawful detention.

“The petition has been rejected since it is not an unlawful detention and Maiti Nepal has no wrong motive behind it,” the bench stated.