“This Court strongly believes that a parent cannot be a guest in their child’s life. If visitation rights only are granted for limited hours, it may not be sufficient for the child to have a comfortable time with the father or mother, whoever may be the case,” the Tripura High Court observed recently as it stressed that overnight custody must be encouraged in custody matters.
The Court also said that when parents and kids live far away from each other, it can make their relationship with the child worse and confuse the child. So, the Court stressed the need to act quickly when one parent tries to keep the child away from the other. If not, the Court warned that the parent who doesn’t have custody might end up seeing the child more like a “visitor.”
In a case handled by Justice T. Amarnath Goud, involving a 6-year-old child, her dad, Rakesh Chandra Saha, and her grandparents, they filed a Section 482 CrPC petition. This petition questioned a court order that gave temporary custody of the child to her mom under the Domestic Violence Act.
The people who filed the petition said that the lower court didn’t look at the evidence properly and didn’t explain well why they gave custody to the mom. They also pointed out that she didn’t have much money to support the child and had left the child before.
The High Court said that the most important thing when deciding what’s best for the child. They also said that both parents’ opinions should be considered, even if the parents aren’t getting along. The Court thought this meant that both parents should have a chance to see the child to keep their connection with the child.
The Court also said that when parents live close by, the parent who doesn’t have custody usually gets to visit the child on weekends.
“In case, the spouses are living at a distance from each other, it may not be feasible or in the interest of the child to create impediments in the education of the child by frequent breaks and, in such cases, the visitation rights must be given over long weekends, breaks and holidays. In cases like the present one where the parents are in two different places far away from each other, effort should be made to give maximum visitation rights to the parent who is denied custody,” the Court further added as it stressed that in addition to “visitation rights”, “contact rights” are also important for the development of the child.
“Unless there are special circumstances to take a different view, the parent who is denied custody of the child should have the right to talk to his/her child for 5-10 minutes every day. This will help in maintaining and improving the bond between the child and the parent who is denied custody. If that bond is maintained, the child will have no difficulty in moving from one home to another during vacations or holidays. The purpose of this is, if one happy home with two parents cannot be provided to the child then let the child have the benefit of two happy homes with one parent each,” the Court observed.
In disputes concerning child custody among parents, the Court recognizes the child as the primary party affected by such conflicts, often becoming entangled in the legal and emotional discord between the parents.
In response, the Court underscores that, while other factors hold relevance, the paramount and definitive consideration should be the child’s wishes, interests, and overall well-being.
Subsequently, after careful consideration of the specific circumstances of the case, the Court has instituted the following revisions to the previous custody order regarding the child:
- The child shall primarily reside with the father on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, reflecting the child’s school attendance and overnight stays during these days.
- On Saturdays following school and on Sundays, custody shall be granted to the mother, taking into account her residence in Agartala at her parental residence. The mother shall be responsible for the child’s transportation to and from the petitioner’s residence without causing disruption to the child’s school schedule.
- During holiday and vacation periods, both parents shall equitably share custody.
- On the child’s birthday, the child shall spend the morning until 4:00 PM with one parent, and from 4:00 PM onward, shall celebrate with the other parent. Should both parents express the desire to jointly commemorate the child’s birthday at a time and location selected by the child, they shall have the liberty to do so. The father shall bear the responsibility for the child’s educational and medical expenses, ensuring her overall well-being.
