'Visitation In Court Premises Not In Child's Interest' : Supreme Court Allows Father To Meet Child In Mall

In a matrimonial dispute related to a child's custody, the Supreme Court recently modified a condition imposed by the Family Court requiring the father to meet the child in the premises of the Court.

The Family Court had allowed the father to have visitation rights of the child on Sundays between 11:00 a.m. to 04:00 p.m at Court premises. Since the Kerala High Court did not interfere with this condition, the father approached the Supreme Court. He contended that the condition confining the child to the empty precincts of the Family Court on a Sunday in the presence of Court officers and a Police Officer who is deputed for duty was not conducive for the welfare of the child. He argued that such a condition will not make the visitation "meaningful and joyous."

Observing that the "environment" also matters, the Supreme Court modified the condition allowing the father to meet the child at a mall every Sunday for three hours.

"...we find that the repeated visitation rights in the Court premises, would also not be in the interest of the child as the environment during which the visitation rights are exercised, would also matter", observed a bench comprising Justices AS Bopanna and Manoj Misra.

The Court allowed the visitation rights to be exercised at RP Mall, Kollam on Sundays between 11 AM and 2 PM. It added that the father will have to hand over his son to the mother after 2 pm at the entrance of the mall. 

Advocates SriramParakkat, Nishe Rajen Shonker, Anu K Joy, Abraham C Mathew, and Alim Anvar represented the father.

Advocates Tanya Aggarwal, Arkaj Kumar, and Neelam Singh appeared for the wife.

Citation : 2023 LiveLaw (SC) 847

Click here to read the order