SURBHI KHANNA Vs. AMIT KHANNA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this petition, the appellant seeks to challenge the tenability of the order dated 21.02.2014 passed by the learned Family Court, North East District.

(2.) THE petitioner has contended that the learned Family Court has failed to appreciate that she had filed a petition under Section 25 of the Guardians and Wards Act for the appointment/declaration of guardian and custody of minor child namely Master Daksh, aged about 5 years 2 months and the learned Family Court after placing reliance on Section 9 Clause (1) of the said Act has taken a view that the Court does not have the territorial jurisdiction because the ordinary place of residence of the minor is situated in the territorial jurisdiction of Ghaziabad District Court. Contention of the petitioner is that in her petition she had clearly stated that on the night of 20th April, 2012 the respondent gave beatings to her for not fulfilling his demand of dowry and threatened to do away with her and to remarry with a rich girl known to him and it is in this background that she had left the matrimonial home along with the minor child and reached the house of her mother on the same day. The petitioner in the petition also averred that on 15.05.2012, in the evening the respondent Nos.2 and 3 came to the house of her mother on the pretext of seeing minor son and with an excuse to provide some gifts, took the minor to the market but they did not return back and in this manner they virtually kidnapped the son of the petitioner. The petitioner immediately called the PCR and lodged the complaint against the respondents for illegally removing the custody of the child from her. The petitioner further submits that it is not in dispute between the parties that the mother of the petitioner is a resident of P -6, A -2, Dilshad Garden, Delhi and as per the allegations levelled by her in the petition she has claimed illegal removal of the custody of the minor child from the house of her mother which is well within the jurisdiction of the Family Court of North East District, Delhi.

(3.) LEARNED counsel for the petitioner has filed the petition under Section 9 of the Guardian and Wards Act, 1890 and prayed that the respondent be directed to hand over the custody of the male child namely Master Daksh to the petitioner as per Section 25 of the Guardianship Act. The prayer para of the said petition is reproduced as under: -