New Delhi: In a relief to unwed mothers, the Supreme Court on Monday ruled that there was no need for the consent of the father in getting guardianship of a child. In a progressive judgment, the Supreme Court on Monday allowed an unwed Hindu mother to apply for guardianship of her minor child without taking consent from the child’s father.
A bench led by Justice Vikramjit Sen allowed the woman, who preferred anonymity and is known only by the acronym ‘ABC’, to approach the localguardianship court on her own accord in the status of an unwed mother without the burden of issuing prior notice to the father.
The Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act requires marriage as a necessary precedent for a parent to apply for guardianship of her child. Under this statute, a woman requires the man’s permission before applying for guardianship. With this judgment, the Supreme Court has given its stamp of approval to a woman’s status as an unwed mother of a child.
Especially as in this case, when the child does not know the identity of the father and when the mother does not want to involve him in the parentin The apex court said that the lower courts, including high court, lost sight of the issue that was before them to be examined and decided the matter without taking into account the welfare of the child.
Bureau Report
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