A family court in Surat, Gujarat, has banned the religious initiation or 'diksha' of a seven-year-old Jain girl. The court acted after her father filed a plea. He claimed his separated wife planned to take their daughter into monkhood without his agreement. The diksha was set for February 8, 2026, in Mumbai. Family court judge SV Mansuri issued a stay on the ceremony. Lawyer Samapti Mehta said, "The court granted our plea for an interim stay on the girl's 'diksha' and kept further hearing on January 2. It has asked the mother to file an affidavit stating that the child will not take part in the ceremony." The mother left her husband's home nearly a year ago after a fight over this issue. She took her daughter and son to live with her parents. The father sought custody under the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, to protect his daughter's interests. He said he had agreed with his wife that their daughter would become a monk only after growing up. However, she pushed for the child to take diksha at a mass ceremony in Mumbai next year. The father also stated the girl is too young to decide on her own. He accused the mother of taking the child to religious events and leaving her alone with a guru in Ahmedabad and another monk in Mumbai without his permission. He said he was not allowed to meet his daughter at these ashrams. The court had asked the mother to reply by December 22. The couple married in 2012 and split in 2024.