Karnataka High Court orders handing over of custody of 16-year-old boy to parents from grandmother and paternal aunts

The High Court of Karnataka has ordered handing over of custody of a 16-year-old boy to his parents from paternal grandmother and paternal aunts, who had claimed his permanent custody and his guardianship by alleging that parents were not caring for him, when, in fact, the parents had left him with them as companion to the aunts, who are unmarried, and the grandmother.

A Division Bench comprising Justice K.S. Mudagal and Justice C.M. Poonacha issued the direction on a petition filed by the boy’s parents, who had questioned the family court’s order of granting temporary custody of the boy to his aunts and grandmother.

The boy was living in the company of his aunts and grandmother, as all of them, including his parents, were living in the same building in Bengaluru city since his birth in 2009. However, differences between his parents and aunts cropped up after during 2015 due to alleged tutoring of of the boy by his aunts against his parents. This was following certain dispute over properties, resulting in the parents living at a different place with their second son, who is now 14.

Suit for guardianship

This resulted in the aunts filling a suit for guardianship of the boy, which ultimately ended with certain compromise on the condition that the parents will have to pay money for boy’s expenses. The aunts filed a petition before the family court in 2018 seeking money from boy’s parents. The parents then filed a suit for custody of their son and the family court in its interim order of April 2023, and ordered temporary custody with aunts as he was living with them.

Acting on the “principle of best interest of the child”, the Bench pointed out that the dispute between boy’s parents and aunts “had a detrimental effect on the minor child…” resulting in the custody of the child continuing with the paternal grandmother and paternal aunts.

“The result of the unfortunate situation is that the minor child has grown up without having a free and natural upbringing with his parents as also a complete absence of bonding with his younger sibling. The same is definitely not in the interest and well being of the minor child,” the court observed.

Though the boy, during his interaction with the judges, had expressed comfort in the custody of aunts, the Bench noted that child’s affinity with the aunts is natural as he has been living with them for a long period due to peculiar circumstances and this aspect alone cannot be considered while deciding custody.

Declining to accept the aunts’ claim that the parents did not have sufficient finances to take care of the boy, the Bench noted that aunts, who claimed financial capacity to take care of him, had sought money from parents by filing a petition. The Bench also noted that boy’s father, who served in a public sector undertaking as a deputy engineer by drawing salary of about ₹2 lakh per month, is getting sufficient pension after his retirement apart from having immovable assets.

Visiting rights

“In this situation, it is clear that the parents are in a better position to take care of the education and other financial needs of the minor child,” the Bench observed while handing over of his custody to parents after current academic session, with effect from May 1. However, the Bench has given visitation rights to aunts and grandmother twice in a month.