26. Attendance at court of parent of child charged with an offence, etc.
(1)Where a child is charged with any offence or is brought before a court on an application for an order to send him to a certified school, his parent or guardian may in any case, and shall, if he can be found and resides within a reasonable distance, be required to attend at the court before which the case is heard during all the stages of the proceedings, unless the court is satisfied that it would be unreasonable to require his attendance.(2)Where the child is arrested, the officer-in-charge of the police station to which he is brought shall cause the parent or guardian of the child, if he can be found, to be warned to attend at the court before which the child will appear.(3)The parent or guardian whose attendance shall be required under this section shall be the parent or guardian having the actual charge of control over, the child:Provided that if such parent or guardian is not the father, the attendance of the father may also be required.(4)The attendance of the parent of a child shall not be required under this section in any case where the child was before the institution of the proceedings removed from the custody or charge of his parent by an order of a court.(5)Nothing in this section shall be deemed to require the attendance of the mother or the female guardian of a child if such mother or female guardian does not according to the customs and manners of the country appear in public, but any such mother or female guardian may appear before the court by a pleader or agent.
