Constitutional Court Rejects Plea to Transfer Child Custody from Mother After Her Second Marriage

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Constitutional Court has rejected a petition seeking the transfer of custody of a nine-year-old child from his mother to his grandmother or aunt on the basis of the mother’s second marriage.
A three-member bench headed by Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi heard the custody case concerning the minor child.
During the hearing, Justice Rizvi questioned the motives behind the custody request, asking why the child’s uncle and aunt wanted custody and whether they had ever inquired about the child’s education and well-being.
The petitioner’s lawyer argued that the child’s mother had remarried. In response, Justice Rizvi remarked that a woman’s second marriage alone could not justify transferring custody of a child.
The lawyer further claimed that the mother had sold the child’s inherited share from his deceased father’s property. Justice Rizvi then questioned whether the petitioners also intended to reclaim the child’s inherited assets.
The court observed that an FIR had also been registered against the mother and noted signs of hostility and bias against her. Justice Rizvi stated that the mother must have obtained permission from the guardian court before selling the property share and emphasized that the matter before the court concerned custody only.
The judge further remarked that the case appeared to place greater importance on property issues rather than the welfare and best interests of the child.
The Federal Constitutional Court ultimately dismissed the petition and upheld previous rulings granting custody to the mother, stating that all lower courts had already maintained the same decision in accordance with the law.
The court noted that custody of the child had originally been granted to the mother following the death of the child’s father.