The High Court has awarded Ksh. 600,000 in compensation to two minors who were expelled from Makini School in 2023. The decision came after the court found that the school’s actions had violated the children’s dignity and caused significant emotional distress.
The minors, who had no prior history of disciplinary issues, were expelled on July 7, 2023, following an alleged disagreement between the school and their parent. According to the details presented in court, the children were abruptly removed from class by the school’s head teacher, Catherine Njuguna. They were then handed termination letters and instructed to wait in the pickup area for their parents to arrive.
The minors, through their mother, filed a lawsuit against Makini School, arguing that the expulsion was unjustified. Advocate Apollo Mboya, who represented the family, told the court that the minors had been top-performing students and were known for their good behavior. Mboya contended that the school’s actions had subjected the children to cruel and degrading treatment, which caused them severe emotional distress.
In his argument, Mboya described the expulsion as “precipitate, hasty, petty, malicious, capricious, draconian, and discriminatory,” adding that the school’s decision was not only unfair but had a profound negative impact on the children’s mental well-being. He emphasized that such treatment was not only damaging to the minors but also to their family, who had to deal with the fallout of the expulsion.
High Court Judge Lawrence Mugambi, in his ruling, sided with the minors, stating that the expulsion was indeed unjust and detrimental to the children’s mental health. The judge underscored the importance of protecting minors from actions that could harm their dignity and emotional state. As a result, the court ordered that Makini School pay Ksh. 600,000 in compensation to the minors for the emotional distress and harm caused by the expulsion.
This ruling highlights the significance of protecting the rights of children in educational institutions and sets a precedent for how schools should handle disciplinary issues in a fair and just manner. It also serves as a reminder to schools to consider the emotional well-being of students before taking drastic actions like expulsion.
