IHC gives Polish mothers custody of children from Pakistani father

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has given the Polish mothers custody of two children from their ex-husband from Pakistan, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

The IHC’s Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani heard a petition filed by two Polish women married to a Pakistan man namely Saleem Muhammad – a resident of Sialkot.

The high court directed Saleem Muhammad to hand over his son and daughter to their Polish mothers after hearing arguments in the child custody case.

The court granted interim custody of the two children to Saleem Muhammad’s ex-wives from Poland. The court further directed the citizen to hand over the Children and their passports to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

The petitioner’s lawyer argued that his client is a Muslim and he had two children from his two Christian ex-wives.

The children’s father apprised the IHC judge that he brought the children to Pakistan with the consent of their mothers, adding that his relationship with his ex-wives had worsened due to religious beliefs as his wives used to take his children to the church.

The court asked the father why he shouldn’t have taken the kids to Poland to nurture his children. The father said it is very difficult for him to raise his children under the Islamic umbrella as the nearest mosque was some 300 kilometres far from his house.

While questioning [Saleem] about his dual nationality, the court observed that it was a crime to which he said he is ready to cancel his 10-year-old Polish citizenship for his kids but he won’t take his children to Poland.

Upon being asked by the court, both women refused to meet their ex-husband.

The court said if the father owned a large business in Poland, he could construct a mosque near his home.

After listening to arguments, the court ordered to hand over the kids to their Polish mothers. The court said that the two children would be kept in Polish Embassy and would be produced again tomorrow (Wednesday).

The court said it had temporarily handed over the children to the mothers and would decide the matter after hearing further arguments.

The father told the court that he had been living with his wife despite the divorce. He said that he had brought his children to Pakistan in August 2021 with the legal permission of both mothers. He also produced the permission letter before the court.

The lawyer said that the two children were Polish citizens and they were studying there, adding that their stay in Pakistan had exceeded.

The court adjourned the hearing of the case till tomorrow (Wednesday).