In a landmark ruling on Tuesday, the Supreme Court emphasized that the welfare of children is the primary concern in custody disputes between estranged parents. The bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol, and Sandeep Mehta, overturned a 2014 Kerala High Court decision that had granted a father interim custody of his children for 15 days each month, labeling the arrangement as “unfeasible” and “detrimental” to the children’s well-being.
The case involved a mother, a software professional, appealing against the high court’s decision that favored her estranged husband, a general manager based in Singapore. The couple, married in 2014 and parents to two young children, separated in 2017 due to marital discord, though they briefly reconciled in 2021.
Justice Mehta, authoring the judgment, stated, “The interim arrangement is neither feasible nor conducive to the well-being, mental and physical, of the children.” He highlighted the necessity of considering the children’s needs for stability, nutrition, and emotional security.
Despite acknowledging the father’s genuine desire to participate actively in his children’s upbringing, the court modified the custody terms to ensure a balanced approach that fosters family bonding without compromising the children’s primary needs. The father was granted the right to spend time with his daughter on alternate weekends and to have supervised visits with his son for up to four hours.
