LAHORE:
The Bahawalpur Bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) expressed strong disapproval over the comments made by a district judge in a guardianship case, terming them irrelevant and biased.
The judge had ruled that a woman's multiple marriages would have a negative impact on her minor daughter, saying: “Daughters always follow in the footsteps of their mothers.”
Justice Faisal Zaman Khan, in a detailed verdict, overturned two earlier judgments of the district court and the appeal court that had awarded her father custody of the minor.
He granted the mother's request and ordered the father to contact the guardianship court to determine a visitation schedule for the child.
The case arose when the ex-husband applied for custody of the minor daughter after the dissolution of the marriage, citing the mother's remarriage as a disqualification. The district court ruled in favor of the father and the appeals court affirmed the decision.
The mother subsequently challenged these decisions before the LHC Bahawalpur Bench.
Justice Khan stressed the paramount importance of the welfare of the minor, especially as she approaches puberty.
He noted that at this critical period of physical and emotional development, the guidance of the mother would be far more beneficial than that of a stepmother or paternal relatives.
Judge Khan strongly criticized the district judge's comments on the plaintiff's remarriages, pointing out that such opinions were not within the judge's jurisdiction.
“The court is a court, not an expert in behavioral science or psychology,” Justice Khan noted, adding that the same test was not applied to the father, who had also remarried several times.
The judge pointed out that the remarriage of both parents should be viewed as equal and should not automatically exclude one party from custody.
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