The Supreme Court today directed a boarding school in Himachal Pradesh to hand over the custody of a 10-year-old Polish child to her mother, four years after she was taken away and abandoned by her biological father.
A bench headed by Justice J S Khehar set aside the Himachal Pradesh High Court order refusing custody to the mother.
The girl was taken away at the age of six in December 2012 from Leicestershire in the United Kingdom to Himachal Pradesh by her biological father, a British citizen.
The father, who admitted the daughter in the school, later abandoned her. The girl's mother is a Polish national and permanent resident of UK.
"We find no justification whatsoever in the High Court handing over the custody of the child to the institution where the child is admitted for education, on the affirmation by the institute itself that it would look after the child, as also, not charge any fee from the child. The handing over of custody to an institution, while ignoring the claim of a parent, especially the mother of the child, is not acceptable.
"In view of the above, the instant appeal is allowed. The impugned order passed by the High Court is set aside. It is hereby directed that as and when the appellant visits India to take the custody of the child, the institution, Akal Academy, Baru Sahib, District Sirmore, Himachal Pradesh, shall duly hand over the custody of the child to the mother," the bench, which also comprised Justice Arun Mishra, said.
The direction came on an appeal filed by the mother, through advocate Pritpal Singh Nijjar, against the Himachal Pradesh High Court order which had dismissed her plea and said that she will only have the right to visit the child and the boarding school will have custody.
Her father had been arrested on his return to UK from India on March 15, 2013 and subsequently convicted and imprisoned for three years in UK on November 27, 2015, the plea said.
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