Bombay HC grants guardianship of minor girl to her paternal grandparents

After the woman, who is the natural guardian of the child, gave no-objection for paternal grandparents being granted guardianship of the minor girl, the bench declared the same and observed it would be in “best interest of the child.”

A single-judge bench of Justice Manish Pitale on February 20 passed the order on the guardianship plea filed through advocates A R Singh and S S Vadake, by the grandfather and grandmother, who were taking care of the 11-year-old child. “The present petition has been filed in peculiar circumstances,” the judge noted.

The petitioners’ son had married the respondent woman, who is the child’s biological mother, in 2011 and the girl was born the next year from the wedlock.

Thereafter, due to differences between the couple, the petitioners’ son and his ex-wife agreed to separate from each other and divorced in May 2019.
In June, 2020 the petitioners’ son died due to Covid-19 infection.

The petitioners submitted that the respondent woman, after being divorced with petitioners’ son, had remarried and has two children from the second marriage.

The court had directed the petitioners to add the respondent woman as party to the proceedings since she is the natural guardian of the minor girl. She filed an affidavit giving her no-objection to the paternal grandparents being appointed as guardian of the child.

The respondent said that she has two children from the second marriage and therefore she was unable to look after the minor daughter from the first marriage. The woman gave her full consent to grant guardianship certificate to the grandparents, without justifying her share in the estate of deceased ex-husband.

“Considering the material brought to the notice of this court and the undisputed facts about the respondent having remarried and having two issues from her second marriage, as also her affidavit signifying no objection to the petitioners being declared as guardians of the minor girl, this court is inclined to allow the present petition,” the bench observed.