Dismissed

Smt. Afsana v. State of U.P. and 3 Others

Allahabad HC2 Sept 2019HABC/748/2019

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Court dismissed a habeas corpus petition challenging the Child Welfare Committee's order to place a minor in a protection home. Relying on Section 94 of the Juvenile Justice Act and educational certificates, the court held the korpus is a minor and cannot be with an accused father. Custody of a minor victim may be ordered in a protection home

What did the court decide?

Petition dismissed without prejudice to parents right to seek custody; protection order expires at majority.

Smt. Afsana Vs State of U.P. and 3 Others — Child Custody and Guardianship | Allahabad HC (2019)

¶1

Court No. - 42

¶2

Case :- HABEAS CORPUS WRIT PETITION No. - 748 of 2019

¶3

Petitioner :- Smt. Afsana Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 3 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Karunesh Narayan Tripathi Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.

¶4

Hon'ble Manoj Misra,J. Hon'ble Mrs. Manju Rani Chauhan,J.

¶5

This habeas corpus petition has been filed by Awdhesh son of Sri Krishna for production of Smt. Afsana and for her release after quashing the order dated 02.04.2019 passed by the Child Welfare Committee, Shahjahanpur.

¶6

A perusal of the record would reveal that Mohd. Hanif (Respondent no.4) lodged a first information report on 04.03.2019 at P.S.-Ramchandra Mission, District-Shahjahanpur against Awdhesh and two others, which was registered as Case Crime No. 0077 of 2019, under Sections 363, 366 I.P.C. In the first information report, it is alleged that the informant's minor daughter, namely, Afsana has been enticed away by the accused persons. The age of the corpus (Afsana) disclosed in the first information report is 16 years.

¶7

In connection with the above case, the corpus (Afsana) was produced before the Child Welfare Committee. The Child Welfare Committee upon finding that the corpus (Afsana) is a minor and she is a child victim, by the impugned order dated 02.04.2019 directed that she shall be placed in a Child Protection Home at Hathoura Bujurg, Shahjahanpur.

¶8

This habeas corpus petition has been filed by placing reliance on the medical examination report of the corpus in which her age is estimated as about 18 years.

¶9

On 05.08.2019, this Court had directed the respondent no.2 to produce the corpus.

¶10

Pursuant to the order dated 05.08.2019, the corpus has been produced before us.

¶11

The corpus has admitted before us that she has studied in Prathamik Vidhyalaya at Shahjahanpur.

¶12

Sri Deepak Mishra, learned A.G.A., has obtained educational

¶13

certificates from the institution concerned, which were relied upon by the Child Welfare Committee and has placed them before us to demonstrate that the recorded date of birth of the corpus in her educational record is 21.06.2003.

¶14

As there exists an educational certificate disclosing the date of birth of the corpus and the authenticity of the same has not been doubted / challenged by the corpus and has also not been challenged in the petition and, in fact, the corpus has also admitted before us that she has studied in Prathamik Vidhyalaya, therefore, the date of birth in the educational certificate would have to be accorded primacy in view of the Section 94 of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.

¶15

As the corpus is a minor, as per her date of birth recorded in her educational certificate, and she does not wish to go with her parents/natural guardian, we find no illegality in the order dated 02.04.2019 of the Child Welfare Committee directing placement of the corpus in a protection home because she cannot be left at the mercy of the petitioner Awadhesh as he himself is an accused.

¶16

In view of the above, this habeas corpus petition is dismissed.

¶17

Dismissal of this petition would be without prejudice to the right of the parents / natural guardian of the corpus to seek for her custody so long she is a minor. In case, any application is filed seeking for her custody, the same shall be dealt with in accordance with law without being prejudice by any observation made in this order. It is also made clear that the corpus shall not be kept in a protection home against her wishes once she attains the age of majority.

¶18

Order Date :- 2.9.2019 JK Yadav

Smt. Afsana v. State of U.P. and 3 Others

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Smt. Afsana v. State of U.P. and 3 Others

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

What the court decided

A compact analysis

Issues for consideration

Statutes considered

Parties & counsel

Coram

Case details

Similar cases

Sadhana Patel and Another Vs State of U.P. and 4 Others

Brij Nandan Vs State

Ram Peyarey Vs State of U.P.

Ram Prasad and Another Vs State

Smt. Deeksha Vs State of U.P. and 5 Others

Shalendra Singh Vs State