Subsequent to Law Commission’s report and recommendation on Shared parenting and Joint Custody to Law Ministry, a Mumbai family court has ordered both mother and father to jointly share custody of their six years old daughter.
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Shared parenting plan ordered for warring couple
In a landmark order, the family court in the city has for the first time set out a shared parenting plan for a warring couple fighting for divorce on the grounds of cruelty and for custody of their child. By this order the estranged couple gets almost equal days -split six months down the year -with their six-year-old daughter as an interim measure till the disposal of the divorce plea.
The child was in the physical custody of the father and the order brings relief to the non-custodial mother. The child will be in physical custody of the father from January 1 till June 30 and with the mother for the remainder of the year. Vacations will also be split equally. The father is a doctor, the mother a nurse.
While this is an order for interim custody, there is already a judgment for shared custody of child by Karnataka High Court in another case earlier.
The release of report by law commission has been a factor leading to this bold step by the judge, which seemingly in this case takes away full custody rights from father and grants shared custody to both parents, but the same argument and precedent can now be used by fathers to get shared custody in their cases.
In developed nations, the law requires that the court-ordered parenting plans must set forth the minimum amount of parenting time and access a non-custodial parent is entitled to have, said the judge and set out a general format for a similar plan in he city. “This is a first occasion in history of family court Mumbai that by judicial order this court is handing over a parenting plan to parties to follow as an interim measure,“ said he judge.
Another important point is that apart from physical custody, there is direction given about freedom of communication of child with both parents via telephone or internet, which is quite necessary given the fact that many parents may be living at a distance if in same city; or even in different cities; and in those cases not having a communication with child means the child will tend to forget or have a ‘visiting’ type of relationship with the non-custodial parent. I take the following measure to be very important because in India such orders are not made at all, given that the standard visitation orders in Indian family courts are for 2 visits for 3 hours each in a month. That becomes more of a joke with routine disobedience of the order by mothers mostly, and the child almost tends to forget the non-custodial parent, fathers in most cases.
It said: “Both parents have a right to unimpeded telephone and webcam conversations with the child at least twice a week. And the right to send gifts with no censoring and receive news on any illness..“
Of course, the divorce industry, feminist lawyers, and some perennially oppressed so called women-empowerment wallahs will feel distressed by this order, because even though it gave relief to the woman in the case; in the long run it could be a major deterrent to using children as bargaining chips in maintenance and divorce proceedings by women. Now it’s up to men to take it forward and make sure that such orders become more and more common, rather than merely trying to find a good divorce lawyer and asking MRAs about “how to get rid of my cases”. There will never be any good divorce lawyers for men, period! The society will not let a man out of marriage easily no matter whether he is at fault or not; and anyway when there are children in marriage, all arguments about cruelty of wife have to be taken separately from welfare of children, but that common sense argument is lost on many men in my experience.
Hariharan says
April 22, 2019 at 6:04 pmDear Sir,
I got married b4 three years and having two boys aged 1.6yrs and 6months old. From the time I got married she is of suspicious nature and aggressively fighting. Using filthy words which no educated girls will use. Mean time her parents and brother and her sister everyone came to my home before two years and broken our furnitures and pressed my mother’s neck in attempt to kill her and beaten me. We had file case on them, police people wished to have peace talk but they never turned. Later on as she was requesting so much I accepted and lived but her nature never changed quarrelling always.
Recently, I moved to different state on work ground she had left my mother outside the house and locked the door and went to her native with key and my mother’s mobile and keeping it switched off. After three days my mother managed to open the door with the help of carpenter. more than two weeks over still she is refusing to return the key and mobile. Since we managed open the door again she is quarrelling over phone like how can you open the door which I had locked. Very small small petty reason she makes as big and then throughout the day keep on scolding with filthy words. Earlier she often tried to commit suicide. Now she threatening like I will write suicide note and kill children and myself. Please suggest me through mail. Thanks in advance
videv says
May 10, 2019 at 3:29 pmHow many proofs have you collected so far? With such psycho woman who threatens to kill the kids too (threatening to kill oneself is almost favourite pastime of such women), you should seriously think of filing child custody case and get the kids with you. Her other behaviour also points to the fact of her being unfit parent to raise the children.
Other advice will go into area of divorce, which is something you will have to learn yourself.
subodh says
June 21, 2017 at 3:03 pmi want divorce from my wife because m not able to live with her bcz of family pressure marriage she is having 3 month child so that i want to get rid out this situation as soon as please suggest me.
videv says
June 22, 2017 at 10:56 amIf a woman says she married due to family pressure, many people will come to rescue the damsel in distress. They will suggest her to get out of ‘abusive’ marriage, tell her that “law is in favour of woman”, and so on.
However the same logic doesn’t apply to a man, and esp why did you have a child? Again, family pressure I suppose! And you want to get rid of her now, again because of family pressure probably. I hope your family only can help you in becoming an escape artist.
ashish says
June 8, 2017 at 1:06 amI iwant to divorcee my wife as the time of marriage she was physically fit according to me, my in laws hides her daughter physical fitness, I don’t get appeal of sex , but by forcefully by her we wade sex in a few no of time with in 3 yes of marriage, by this I have 11 month daughter and I want divorcee any how , plzz help me out
videv says
June 8, 2017 at 8:48 pmAfter having a child is the wrong time to ‘discover’ that wife is not giving ‘appeal of sex’. Now your only hope is to find a very very very good divorce lawyer to ‘help’ you out.
Shankar Nair says
May 9, 2017 at 9:36 amMy wife left me,along with my son, 4Years 6Months to her father house.Her father practice in Kolkata Hicourt. She always insisted with her father words. She never care our word. Her father always try to involved our family matters.She left with all jewellery necklace, which is given from our house.till date she hasn’t any file any case.Now position is unpredictable and she and her father keeps prasser over phone to me & my parents. Her father also keep communicate with my office & our resident neighbours.
videv says
May 9, 2017 at 10:02 amYou can ask this hi-court practising but low(life) standards father in law to stop communicating to your office, or even neighbours. Send him written message/letter and if he still doesn’t stop file for injunction in civil court. Don’t be the weak helpless guy, unless you love being pitiable.
You haven’t mentioned your own location. If remote from child, File child custody case and ask for remote skype/telephone talk to children 3-4 times a week, along with 20 days in summer vacation, and 10 days in other vacation. If in same city, you can ask for regular meetings with child and overnight access too.
People even those having children sit on their butts for years doing nothing hoping things will happen by themselves. After that time, even if you file child custody it will become practically useless.
Raj says
April 19, 2016 at 3:59 pmMy wife left with my 7 months old boy to her father and mother and she is not at all willing to come back to my home.
How can i get my son back as i cannot live without him.
What should I do so that my wife and son comes back to me?
videv says
April 22, 2016 at 9:13 am>>What should I do so that my wife and son comes back to me?
For child you can file child custody, but legally there is no way to bring wife back … law doesn’t prescribe any duty on wife to live with husband
Vijay says
December 22, 2015 at 5:01 pmCan you please email the judgement copy to me. I do not find it here. Tried to search for it and cannot find it.
The report by law commission will also be beneficial.
videv says
December 23, 2015 at 1:38 pmIf you try to search in google search box on top right of this site, you will find both on this site itself.
Jeevan says
November 2, 2015 at 3:04 pmCan you provide the judgement in pdf. I am trying but not getting. Only judge name is given. I need it badly.
Pradeep kanojia says
September 27, 2015 at 3:43 amIt was interesting,becoz I am confused by my wife family members
Rudra says
June 23, 2015 at 3:29 pmMuchas Gracias!