9YO Hindu boy forced to leave UK school after being barred from wearing tilak: 'No child should choose between faith and education'

The father of a nine-year-old Indian-origin British boy has taken his son's former primary school in London to the High Court, alleging religious discrimination and harassment after the child was not allowed to wear the Tilak-Chandlo, a sacred Hindu mark on the forehead.

The family is seeking 25,000 pounds in damages from the governing body of Vicar's Green Primary School in West London. They allege religious discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 and a violation of rights under the Human Rights Act 1998. The family is represented by the law firm Ashray Law and backed by the organisation Action for Harmony.

What the family alleges

The boy, a practising Hindu from the Swaminarayan tradition, had been wearing the Tilak-Chandlo, a U-shaped sandalwood paste mark with a red kumkum dot, to school since 2021 without objection, according to court papers. The family alleges the school objected to the mark in late 2025, and that the child was repeatedly questioned about his faith, removed from the School Council and barred from certain activities.

His parents claim they were asked to move him to a faith school if they wanted him to continue the practice. They say the ordeal left their child distressed and anxious, forcing them to withdraw him from the school.

The school's position

The school denies the charges. Denying any discrimination, the administration maintains it acted sensitively and had offered alternatives. No final judicial order has been passed, and the matter remains sub judice.

Why the case matters

When the case came to light a few months ago, it triggered outrage in the British Hindu community. With over a million Hindus in the UK, the case is being seen as a crucial test of how minority faiths are accommodated in mainstream British schools.

"This case goes beyond one child or one school. It raises important questions about religious freedom and equality in British education. No child should feel compelled to choose between their faith and their education," said Ambrish Limbachia, lawyer and director of Ashray Law.

Nitin Palan, head of Action for Harmony, said every child in Britain deserves to feel respected and free to practise their faith, and that the case is about promoting fairness, not division. "We hope these proceedings help clarify the rights of children from all religious backgrounds," Limbachia added.

The wider picture

The case lands against a backdrop of rising concern among Hindu families in Britain. UK Home Office figures for the year ending March 2026 show police-recorded religious hate crimes targeting Hindus rose to 210, up from 182 the previous year, with overall hate crimes against Hindus seeing an estimated 15 percent increase in recent periods.

A 2023 study by the Henry Jackson Society, the first of its kind into anti-Hindu hate in the UK, found that 51 percent of surveyed Hindu parents reported their children had experienced anti-Hindu discrimination or bullying in UK schools. Fewer than 1 percent of schools with Indian pupils queried under FOI reported any anti-Hindu-related incidents in the previous five years. The same study found 19 percent of Hindu parents believed schools were able to identify anti-Hindu hate, and 15 percent believed schools adequately address such incidents.