Unbecoming Of Judge: Bombay High Court Slams Family Court For Denying Medical Custody Of Child Needing Open Heart Surgery
|A father sought temporary custody of his infant son so the child could undergo a scheduled open heart surgery.
The Bombay High Court strongly criticized the conduct of a Family Court Judge in Kaij, and the mother of a minor child in a case concerning urgent interim medical custody.
The case involved a father seeking temporary custody of his infant son so the child could undergo a scheduled open heart surgery. The case was brought to the High Court after the father appealed a May 17, 2025, order by the Family Court in Kaij. That order denied an expedited hearing on his petition for temporary custody of his son for medical purposes.
A Bench of Justice Rohit W. Joshi expressed serious concern and disappointment over the Family Court's handling of the matter. According to the Court, the Family Court Judge failed to treat the situation with the urgency it clearly warranted, declining to even hear the plea on an urgent basis. It added, "The conduct of the judge to say the least, is unbecoming of any judge. Equally shocking is the conduct of the respondent – mother, who is opposing the prayer for interim custody, despite specifically admitting that the child is required to undergo the said operation."
The Court also expressed shock at the conduct of the child's mother, who not only opposed the father's plea for interim custody but also objected to the request for an urgent hearing. This, despite the mother openly acknowledging that the child indeed required the heart surgery.
Advocate MP Gandle appeared for the Petitioner.
The child, born on September 21, 2023, is currently in the mother's custody in Kaij Tehsil, located in Beed district—approximately 200 kilometers from the MGM Medical Centre & Research Institute Super Specialty Hospital in Aurangabad, where the surgery is scheduled for the first week of June 2025.
Highlighting this geographical distance and the urgency of the situation, the father had sought temporary medical custody so he could ensure timely treatment for the child. However, the Family Court had postponed the hearing until the end of the summer vacation, disregarding the immediate medical needs of the child.
The Court personally instructed its court staff to verify the necessity and timing of the surgery with the concerned hospital. Upon confirmation that the surgery was indeed scheduled for early June, the High Court quashed the Family Court's order.
Granting interim custody to the father, the Court ruled, "Having regard to the urgency in the matter, the application for interim custody of the child filed in the said proceeding is allowed. The respondent - mother is directed to place the child in custody of the father in Aurangabad tomorrow i.e. on May 28 for the purpose of undergoing surgery as recorded. The child will be in custody of the father during the course of hospitalisation and the mother will get custody of the child subject to further medical advise since the mother stays at Kaij, which is at a distance of 200 km from Aurangabad."
Cause Title: X v. Y & Anr.