The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court observed that it was time for the legislature to take note of the foreign marriages that had become common and redefine the jurisdiction of family court in the interest of children and the person interested in the welfare of children so that they do not suffer.
Justice J. Nisha Banu observed the law should take a line matching the changes happening in the society. If the law is lagging behind, the rights of the parties will also lag behind. The judge said that innumerable foreign marriages were taking place each day.
The Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 was of the year 1890 when foreign marriages were not in contemplation, the judge observed. The court was hearing a petition filed by the mother of a boy seeking his custody. She filed the petition after a family court returned her petition.
The petition filed before the Kanniyakumari Family Court was returned on the ground of lack of territorial jurisdiction. It was submitted that the couple from Kanniyakumari district left India with their children in 2014, impliedly saying they were residing in India till 2014.
The woman sought to be declared the natural guardian of her son and to be handed over the custody of her son. The judge directed the family court to take the case on file and observed that if the issue of jurisdiction was doubtful, it was open to the court to consider in the light of evidence offered during enquiry.