Chennai: A father who projected himself as a childless divorcee on a matrimonial website has disowned his minor child and rendered himself unfit to act as the child’s guardian, Madras high court has held. The court granted permanent guardianship to the mother, permitting her to take the child to Canada, where she resides.Justice P B Balaji observed that the father’s matrimonial advertisement clearly established that he had disowned his child and projected himself as a divorcee without children. “The advertisement clearly confirms the fact that the father has disowned his own minor child and, having projected himself to be a divorcee with no children, I do not see the father to be in any way competent to be a guardian or act in the best interest of the minor child,” the judge said. Accordingly, the court granted the mother permanent guardianship of the child and permitted her to take the child to Canada.The issue pertains to a plea moved by the mother seeking to declare her as the sole guardian of the child and to grant permission to take the child outside the jurisdiction of the court.According to the petitioner, she got separated from her husband by order of dissolution of marriage dated Mar 14, 2023. Despite being granted visitation rights, he has not been interested in seeing his own child, except for a couple of instances when he chose to exercise his visitation rights immediately after the order came to be passed in 2024 and not any time thereafter.The child was in her custody. In Dec 2022, she was transferred and posted to Canada. Therefore, she left the child in her parents’ custody and left for Canada. Ever since, the maternal grandparents have been taking care of the minor child.Now, since she has been granted permanent residency by the gov of Canada and she is financially stable, she wanted to take her child to Canada.On the contrary, the father has not shown any interest in even seeing the child despite being given a visitation right. He has also not chosen to contest the present petition. While so, it was brought to the notice of the court about the matrimonial advertisement given by the father. Taking note of the advertisement, the court passed the order.
