Overview
- Justices Manoj Misra and Ujjal Bhuyan held that a parent's remote or hybrid work arrangement cannot, by itself, decide custody.
- The Court left the 2024 custody award to the father intact because the child, now over five, wished to remain with him and had continuity of schooling with elder family members providing support.
- The ruling reaffirmed that custody must turn on a holistic best‑interest assessment focused on emotional bonding, stability, comfort, and the child’s wishes where appropriate.
- The Supreme Court disapproved the High Court’s reliance on the father’s home presence and the mother’s COVID‑era travel as grounds for custody.
- The bench clarified that responsible professional or vacation travel should not be deemed irresponsible, and the mother continues to have visitation rights in Poonam Wadhwa v. Ajay Wadhwa.