This case involves the future of a young girl (Meher Fatima) who lost her mother to epilepsy when she was barely
two years old. At the time when her mother was unwell and subsequently in hospital, she was at the house of her maternal grandmother being looked after by her maternal family, including a maternal uncle and unmarried aunt along with the grandmother.
The dispute regarding the child’s guardianship arose three months after the mother’s demise when her maternal
family (“Respondents”) refused to hand over her physical custody to her father (“Petitioner”). The petitioner filed a
section 491 application before the Sessions Court to regain custody. The court ruled that this was not a case of abduction and the correct course of action for the father would be to initiate proceedings under the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 (“Guardians Act”).
Read the Islamabad High Court Judgement on the Legal Custody of Meher Fatima.
Writ Petition No. 2383/2021
Ahmed Bilal Vs. Khurram Javed
Decision announced in the open Court on 16.06.2022
