Welfare of child will take priority, says Supreme Court
Rightful place of the child in the sizeable fabric has been recognised in many international covenants, which are adopted in this country as well.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the welfare of minor child is the paramount consideration while granting custody of the child either to father or mother, separated after divorce.
A bench of Justices A.K. Sikri and R.K. Agrawal gave this ruling while entrusting custody of a 15-year-old girl to the father, ignoring the claims of the mother who chose to live in the United Kingdom.
The bench said in the appointment or declaration of any person as guardian of a Hindu minor by a court, the welfare of the minor shall be the paramount consideration. The best interest of the child has been placed at the vanguard of family/custody disputes according the optimal growth and development of the child primacy over other considerations.
Writing the judgment, Justice Sikri said the effect of separation of spouses on children — psychologically, emotionally and even, to some extent, physically — spans from negligible to serious, which could be insignificant to noticeably critical. Rightful place of the child in the sizeable fabric has been recognised in many international covenants, which are adopted in this country as well.
Child-centric human rights jurisprudence that has been evolved over a period of time is founded on the principle that public good demands proper growth of the child, who are the future of the nation.