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Sharmila Velamur v. V. Sanjay

Criminal Appeal · 2025 INSC 299Decided 3 Mar 2025
Criminal Appeal (arising out of SLP (Crl.) No. 17281 of 2024), with Contempt Petition (C) No. 9 of 2025
Justice Surya Kant · Justice Dipankar Datta

Background

A divorced US-citizen couple disputed custody of their 22-year-old son, Aadith, who has Ataxic Cerebral Palsy and an intellectual disability. The father brought Aadith to India in 2023 without informing the mother, who had since been appointed his legal guardian by a court in Idaho, USA. The mother filed a habeas corpus petition in the Madras High Court, which found no illegal detention after a brief in-person conversation with Aadith convinced it he was happy living with his father in Chennai; the mother appealed to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court ordered a comprehensive multidisciplinary medical evaluation of Aadith at NIMHANS, Bengaluru, which concluded he functions cognitively at the level of an 8-to-10-year-old child and cannot make complex, informed decisions about matters like his place of residence, though he can manage basic daily tasks. The Court held that the High Court had erred by relying solely on a short oral interaction with Aadith while disregarding this kind of expert medical evidence, especially given his documented cognitive limitations. Applying the "parens patriae" doctrine (the court's duty to act as guardian for those who cannot decide for themselves), the Court found Aadith's best interests lay in returning to the US to live with his mother and younger brother (who share similar developmental needs and a close bond), and it set aside the High Court's judgment, directing Aadith's return to the US within 15 days.

Lesson Learnt

When a person's mental capacity to consent is in genuine dispute, courts must rely on rigorous, independent medical/psychological assessment rather than their own brief impressions, and where someone cannot make binding decisions for themselves, the court steps in to decide what genuinely serves their welfare, not simply what they say they prefer in the moment.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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