HC comes to rescue of 9 yr-old girl, gives custody to father

The Delhi High Court has come to the rescue of a 9-year-old daughter of an estranged couple by allowing the US-based software engineer father to take her custody and get her admitted in a school as her mother not only harassed her but also did not provide any education.
The bench considered the fervent cries for help of the minor girl in an open court hearing that she was neither been sent to a school nor was being allowed to play and hence, be sent to the US with her father and brother. She also alleged harassment at the hands of her mother.

"We are not today going into the greivances and differences between the husband and wife. As per the well- settled legal position, we are only concerned with the welfare of the minor daughter of the petitioner and the mother.
"Considering the fact that she herself pleaded before us with folded hands that she does not want to stay with her mother because of her cruel behaviour towards her as also the fact that she is being deprived of her legitimate right to getting proper education...," a bench headed by Justice P K Bhasin said.
The bench referred to its earlier order in which the mother had agreed to give custody of the daughter to her father and said she cannot be allowed to "back track".

"Prima facie we are convinced that it would be in the fitness of things that at least the interim custody of the girl is handed over to the petitioner father," it said.

The bench also asked the father Satyajit Biswas, who is a green card holder and is working as a software engineer in the US, to deposit Rs 10 lakh as security with the high court registry and inform it that she has been admitted in a school there.
It directed Biswas to ensure that he brings the girl before the court within a period of six months when it will review the situation and pass appropriate orders.

The court was hearing the plea filed by Biswas through lawyers Sumita Kapil and Shaan Mohan.
The petition had sought a direction to the wife of Biswas, Delhi Police, National Commission For Protection of Child Rights and Delhi Commission For Protection of Child Rights that his daughter, a US citizen by birth, be handed over to him.