‘Kashmir education as good as Qatar’: Court lets mother retain minor children’s custody

The Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court recently permitted two minor boys to stay in Kashmir with their mother, dismissing their father's argument that education in Qatar is superior. The court, led by Justice Sanjay Dhar, held that the children had integrated well into the local culture and were performing well academically in Kashmir.

The judge emphasized that relocating the children back to Qatar would be detrimental as they had adjusted to their current environment and were excelling in their studies. The court also noted that the father, an electrical engineer in Qatar, had himself studied in Srinagar, enabling him to secure a prestigious job abroad. The mother's conduct was also appreciated, as she had not estranged the children from their father and had granted him temporary custody when he requested it.

The father had filed a case seeking custody, claiming that the children's education and welfare had been affected by their relocation to Kashmir. However, the court found that the father did not fulfill his financial responsibilities by failing to pay the maintenance of 3,000 riyals to the children, despite being ordered to do so by the Qatar court.

The court also highlighted the children's relationship with their grandparents in Kashmir and allowed the father to have interim custody during summer and winter vacations, as well as the right to communicate with them regularly.