CATHERINE Vs. SURESH KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is present. Respondent is also present. Respondent has come to this Court along with the child. We permitted the child to have interactions with the mother. After the lunch recess, we interacted with the child. THE child has been with the father only from 29/4/2010. It is reported that the respondent/father, without permission of the Family Court, had taken the child out of the jurisdiction of the Family Court to his place of employment abroad. THE learned counsel for the petitioner disputes this assertion and submits that the child was being clandestinely detained in India at some unknown destination. THE respondent has not produced the original of the passport to satisfy us that the child had been taken out of India to his place of employment.

(2.) OUR interactions with the child reveals that the child, aged 11 years, is labouring under some fear and is not speaking genuinely, openly or voluntarily. The child appears to be afraid to go to its mother. During our interactions with the child, the child stated before us that he is willing to go with the maternal grand father and grand mother of the child.

(3.) AT any rate, we are satisfied that the Family Court can be directed to dispose of the matter afresh. The matter is now pending before the Family Court, Thiruvananthapuram. Both sides agree that they shall appear before the Family Court on 04/08/2010.