ANIL KUMAR PRADHAN AND ORS. Vs. MADHABI PRADHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Order dated 25.4.2014 passed by the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Champua in Guardian Petition No.2 of 2013, allowing the petition under Section 25 of the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 to hand over the custody of the minor girl to her mother, is under challenge in this appeal.

(2.) Briefly stated the petitioner-respondent (mother of the child) filed a petition under Section 25 of the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 for custody of her minor daughter, namely, Poonam Pradhan, alleging that she got married to the opposite party- appellant no. 1, namely, Anil Kumar Pradhan, on 03.07.2010. After their marriage, the petitioner-respondent stayed in her in-laws house at village Balibandha in the district of Keonjhar. Out of their wedlock, Poonam was born on 7.7.2011. However, there was a break down in the marital life as the in-laws of the petitionerrespondent ill-treated her and did not provide the basic necessities for her sustenance and her minor daughter. On 17.4.2012, the petitioner-respondent was driven out from her in-laws house forcibly removing the custody of the minor daughter from her. However, due to intervention of the parents and relatives of the petitionerrespondent, she returned back to her in-laws house. Again on 5.1.2013, the opposite party-appellant nos. 1, 2 and 4 forcibly administered poison to the petitioner-respondent for which she was hospitalized in Jhumpura C.H.C. and was discharged on the next day, i.e. on 6.1.2013. Learning about the incident, the father of petitioner-respondent came and took her back to his house, but her in-laws did not allow to take the minor daughter (Poonam) with her. The father of petitioner-respondent lodged an F.I.R. at Jhumpura P.S. which was registered as Jhumpura P.S. Case No. 3 of 2013 under Sections 498-A/323/307/34 I.P.C. read with Section 4 of the D.P. Act. The petitioner-respondent claimed that as Poonam is a breast feeding child, the opposite parties-appellants could not take proper care of her and she would be deprived of proper nourishment and affection of her mother. Hence, she filed the petition for the aforesaid relief.

(3.) The opposite parties-appellants filed their show cause admitting the marriage, relationship and custody of the child with them, but they denied all other allegations made in the petition. They contended that the petitioner-respondent never behaved properly with her elders and she was not looking after the child properly and abandoning the child, she left the in-laws house. However, the opposite party-appellant no. 1 after much persuasion brought her back for the welfare of the child. The petitionerrespondent was of unpredictable temperament and short-tempered.