Custody rights of Indian moms (and dads) after divorce

Recently, the Supreme Court had stayed an order of the Gujarat High Court asking a mother to take her eight-year-old son to the United Kingdom, because of a judicial order passed there in a custody battle initiated by her estranged husband. Divorce and custody battles can become a quagmire and the innocent child gets caught up in the legal and psychological warfare between both parents.

Under Indian law, maximum importance is given to the best interests of the child and so either parent does not have a clear primacy to be granted the custody of the child.

After the dissolution of a marriage, custody of a child can be given as:

Joint Physical Custody: A new concept that has evolved while negotiating divorce settlements. Both parents will have legal custody, but one will have the physical custody (child resides with him or her) and will be the child’s primary caretaker.

Sole Custody: One parent has been proven to be an abusive and unfit parent and the other parent is granted custody.

Third Party Custody: Neither of the biological parents are given custody of the child. Instead, the child custody is granted to a third person by the court.

The Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 is the universal law pertaining to issues involving child custody and guardianship in India, regardless of the child’s religion. However, under secular principles, India also sanctions laws pertaining to different religions.

• Under secular law as well as Hindu lawThe mother usually gets custody of the minor child, under the age of five.
• Fathers get custody of older boys and mothers of older girls, but it is not a strict rule and is primarily decided based on the child’s interests.
• The choice of a child above the age of nine is considered.
• A mother who is proven to neglect or ill-treat the child is not given custody.

Custody under Muslim Law

As per the Muslim Law, only the mother holds the ultimate right to seek her child/children’s custody under the Right of Hizanat as long as she is not convicted or found guilty of any misconduct. The father’s right of Hizanat is applicable only in the absence of an able mother.

Custody under Christian Law

If divorce is inevitable, acrimonious battles cannot be the option to settle issues of child custody and access. Custody of a child only implies to whom the child will physically reside with. Both parents continue to be natural guardians.

Helpful information

The thinking has shifted from custody and access being the ‘right of a parent’ to being the ‘right of a child’. The principle on which custody is decided is the ‘best interests of the child’. Therefore, the parent who can take better care of the child’s emotional, educational, social and medical needs is favoured.

The earning capacity of the parent does not determine custody, but the capacity to provide a safe and secure environment does. Even a mother who is a housewife can gain custody of the child and the father will be asked to provide child support.

The mother is the preferred custodial parent when the child is less than five years old. The opinion of a child who is over nine years old will be considered.

The non-custodial parent can get different types of access to the child based on circumstances and convenience. For example, court could grant weekly, fortnightly, daily or monthly visitation rights. It can be day or overnight access. It could also be free access with no fixed schedule, but as per the parents’ and the child’s convenience.

The parents can agree to a one-time amount or a staggered payment at different stages of the child’s educational life or a monthly payment with incremental increase. The child support should cover the child’s educational and nominal lifestyle expenses.

The court is parens patriae or the ultimate guardian of the child. So the child’s property is protected by law, and terms of custody, visitation and child support can be altered in changed circumstances in the interest of the child.

Other interesting rulings

A Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Vikramjit Sen had ruled that an unwed mother does not have to take consent from the biological father of the child, or reveal his identity for sole guardianship of the child.

The Delhi High Court has ruled that using the mother’s name is sufficient for a child to apply for a passport when the child is being brought up by a single mother without any involvement from the father.