"Can't Underestimate Power Of Mother's Love, It Must Be Given Unconditionally": Allahabad HC Grants Custody Of 2 Kids To Mother

Stressing that a mother's love must be given unconditionally to establish trust and a firm foundation of emotional intimacy in a child's life, the Allahabad High Court recently granted the custody of two children to their mother.

The bench of Justice Rahul Chaturvedi ordered thus while dealing with a habeas corpus plea moved by one Seema Sharma seeking the custody of her two kids who were in the company of their grandmother.

The case in brief

The Mother (Seema Sharma) got married to one Kapil Sharma (now late) in March 2016, and the couple was blessed with two kids (a minor daughter of 5 years and a minor son of 2½ years). Sharma was named as an accused along with 5 others in the case of the suicidal death of her husband. The investigation is still going on and no charge sheet has been submitted so far.

After the demise of her Husband, Sharma started living with her sister at Moradabad independently, whereas, her small kids remained in the company of her grandmother (one Ms. Deepa Sharma). Against this backdrop, Sharma moved to the High Court seeking the custody of both the kids.

Court's observations 

Taking into account Section 6(a) of the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956, the Court noted that this particular provision preserves the right of the father to be the guardian of the property of the minor child, but he is not the guardian of his person, whilst the child is less than five years old.

The Court noted that this provision carves out the exception of interim custody, in the distinction of guardianship, and then specifies that custody should be given to the mother so long as the child is below five years in age.

Further, observing that in the instant case, there is a tussle going on between the mother, being natural guardian of the kids on one hand and the grandmother and paternal aunt (Bua) on the other hand over the custody of minor children, the Court came to the conclusion that the mother, being the natural guardian of those kids stands on much higher footing than that of the grandmother or their parental aunt (Bua).

Against this backdrop, stressing the need for a mother's love in a child's life, the Cour made the following significant observation:

"Children are not play things of their parents. Their welfare is of paramount importance and they will be well protected when the mother is with them. A child should never feel as if they need to earn a mother's love. This will leave a void in their heart all of their life. A mother's love must be given unconditionally to establish trust and a firm foundation of emotional intimacy in a child's life. If love is withheld, a child will look for it in a million other ways. Sometimes they will search throughout their lifetime, unless they come to some sort of peace with their past. The emotional foundation we give our children at home is foundational to their life. We cannot underestimate the value of the home and the power of a mother's love." (emphasis supplied)

Consequently, after weighing the rights of a mother and grandmother towards the children, the Court found more weight in the right of the mother, being a natural guardian than that of the grand-mother, therefore, the custody of both the children was handed over to their mother Ms. Seema Sharma in the Court itself.

However, the grandmother, if she desires, has been given a visitation right over her grand-children once a week i.e. every Saturday between 12.00 noon to 05.00 P.M. With this observation, the habeas corpus petition was disposed of.

Case title - Km. Sanaya Sharma (Minor) And Another v. State Of U.P. And 4 Others

Case citation: 2022 LiveLaw (AB) 193

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