Bombay HC allows woman to relocate to US with minor daughter, asks her to forfeit her share of Pune home in case of contempt

Bombay High Court/ File Photo

The Bombay High Court has granted permission for a woman to relocate to the United States with her minor daughter. However, this permission comes with a condition - she will forfeit her 50% share in their co-owned flat in Pune if she fails to grant her estranged husband access to the child, stated a PTI report.

The high court heard an application filed by the woman, who sought permission to take her minor daughter, currently in her custody, to the US. The order was passed by a division bench of Justices BP Colabwalla and MM Sathaye on September 4.

According to the PTI report, the couple had mutually consented to divorce in 2020 but had a dispute over access to their minor daughter. A family court in Pune had granted custody of the child to the mother but insisted on regular access for the father.

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Over the last three years, both parties filed several applications, including a contempt plea by the man, alleging that he was not given access to his daughter, the report read.

When the woman filed the application in the High Court, seeking to relocate to the US, the bench directed the couple to undergo mediation and resolve their disputes. The couple then filed their consent terms before the HC.

The bench, reportedly, noted that the estranged husband has given his consent to allow his daughter to relocate with the mother to the US but under the condition that he would be given virtual as well as physical access, and that the woman would withdraw certain criminal cases filed against him.

However, the man expressed concerns that although the consent terms provided for access to his daughter, there was no guarantee that it would be adhered to. He argued that there would be no effective way to enforce this, as the woman would be outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts. The bench acknowledged that these concerns were "well-founded".

Considering that the woman would be taking the child abroad, the bench deemed it fair and equitable that if the consent terms were violated, the man would be free to file contempt proceedings. In such contempt proceedings, if the court concluded that there had been willful disobedience of the consent terms regarding access, the court would have the authority to require the mother to transfer her 50% share in the flat in Pune to the father.

If the woman did not transfer her share willingly, the court would be authorized to appoint a court commissioner to act on her behalf for the transfer of her 50% share to the man.