Sheila B. Das vs P.R Sugasree (SC) (Appeal (Civil) 6626 of 2004)
The appellant, who appeared in person, urged that both the Family Court and the High Court had erred in law in removing the minor child from the custody of the mother to the father’s custody, having particular regard to the fact that the minor girl was still of tender age and had attained the age when a mother’s care and counseling was paramount for the health and well-being of the minor girl child. The appellant submitted that the minor child would soon attain puberty when she would need the guidance and instructions of a woman to enable her to deal with both physical and emotional changes which take place during such period.
Apart from the above, the appellant, who, as stated hereinbefore, is a doctor by profession, claimed to be in a better position to take care of the needs of the minor in comparison to the respondent who, it was alleged, had little time at his disposal to look after the needs of the minor child.
From the evidence adduced on behalf of the parties, the appellant tried to point out that from morning till late at night, the respondent was busy in court with his own work and activities which left the minor child completely alone and uncared for. According to the appellant, the respondent who had a farm house some distance away from Thrissur, spent his week- ends and even a major part of the week days in the said farm house. The appellant urged, that as a mother, she knew what was best for the child and being a professional person herself she was in a position to provide the minor not only with all such comforts as were necessary for her proper and complete upbringing, but also with a good education and to create in her an interest in extracurricular activities such as music and dancing. The appellant strongly urged that the respondent had never had any concern for the minor child since her birth and till the time when the appellant left with her for Calicut.
The appellant contended that for 7 years after the birth of the minor child, the appellant had single-handedly brought up the minor since the respondent was too preoccupied with other activities to even notice her.
According to the appellant, the minor child was extremely happy to be with her till the respondent began to claim custody of the minor and soon after obtaining such custody, he was able to influence the minor to such an extent that she even went to the extent of informing the learned Judge of the Family Court that she preferred to stay with her father.
On this aspect of the matter, the appellant urged that the minor had been exposed by the respondent to what she termed as "Parental Alienation Syndrome". She urged that such a phenomenon was noticeable in parents who had been separated and who are bent upon poisoning the mind of their minor children against the other party. According to the appellant, there could otherwise be no other explanation as to why even after being with the appellant for 7 years, the minor child had expressed a preference to be with her father after she was placed in his custody. The appellant laid stress on her submissions that not only till the age of 8 years, when custody of the minor child was given to him, but even thereafter the respondent had all along been an absentee father taking little or no interest in the affairs and upbringing of the minor child. According to the appellant, in view of the peculiar habits of the respondent, the minor child was left on her own much of the time, which was neither desirable nor healthy for a growing adolescent girl child.
Urging that she had the best interest of the minor child at heart, the appellant submitted that although under the provisions of Hindu Law by which the parties were governed, the father is accepted as the natural guardian of a minor, there were several instances where the courts had accepted the mother as the natural guardian of a minor in preference to the father even when he was available. Referring to Section 6 of the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956, which provides that the natural guardian of a Hindu minor in the case of a boy or an unmarried girl is the father and after him the mother; provided that the custody of a minor who has not completed the age of 5 years shall ordinarily be with the mother, the appellant submitted that the aforesaid provision had recognized the mother also as the natural guardian of a minor. It was urged that in various cases the Courts had considered the said provision and had opined that there could be cases where in spite of the father being available, the mother should be treated to be the natural guardian of a minor having regard to the incapacity of the father to act as the natural guardian of such minor.
In support of her aforesaid submission, the appellant referred to and relied on the decision of this Court in Hoshie Shavaksha Dolikuka vs. Thirty Hoshie Dolikuka, reported in AIR 1984 SC 410, wherein having found the father of the minor to be disinterested in the child’s welfare this Court held that the father was not entitled to the custody of the child.
The appellant also referred to and relied on a Division Bench decision of the Kerala High Court in the case of Kurian C. Jose vs. Meena Jose, reported in 1992 (1) KLT 818, wherein having regard to the fact that the father was living with a concubine who was none else than the youngest sister of the mother, it was held that the father was not entitled to act as the guardian of the minor. On a consideration of the provisions of Section 17 (3) of the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, it was also held that a minor’s preference need not necessarily be decisive but is only one of the factors to be taken into consideration by the court while considering the question of custody.
We have also considered the various decisions cited by the appellant which were all rendered in the special facts of each case. In the said cases the father on account of specific considerations was not considered to be suitable to act as the guardian of the minor. The said decisions were rendered by the Courts keeping in view the fact that the paramount consideration in such cases was the interest and well-being of the minor. In this case, we see no reason to consider the respondent ineligible to look after the minor. In fact, after having obtained custody of the minor child, the respondent does not appear to have neglected the minor or to look after all her needs. The child appears to be happy in the respondent’s company and has also been doing consistently well in school. The respondent appears to be financially stable and is not also disqualified in any way from being the guardian of the minor child. No allegation, other than his purported apathy towards the minor, has been levelled against the respondent by the appellant. Such an allegation is not borne out from the materials before us and is not sufficient to make the respondent ineligible to act as the guardian of the minor.
We, therefore, feel that the interest of the minor will be best served if she remains with the respondent but with sufficient access to the appellant to visit the minor at frequent intervals but so as not to disturb and disrupt her normal studies and other activities.