The National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999, being a special legislation, excludes the jurisdiction of Family Courts regarding the appointment of guardians for persons with disabilities, which is exclusively vested in the Local Level Committees under the Act.

AFR

{FA(MAT) No.314/2023}

{Arising out of order dated 31-10-2023 in Civil MJC No.7/2022 of the Judge, Family Court, Manendragarh/Camp Baikunthpur, District Koria}

Judgment reserved on: 24-3-2026

Judgment delivered on: 15-4-2026

Judgment (Full) uploaded on: 15-4-2026

C.A.V. Judgment

Sanjay K. Agrawal, J.

For sake of exposition, this Order is divided in following parts:-

Challenge in the Appeal

1. The appellants herein seek to challenge the impugned order dated 31-10-2023 passed by the Judge, Family Court, Manendragarh/ Camp Court Baikunthpur, District Koria in Civil MJC No.7/2022, by which their application filed under Section 14(1) of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999 (for short, 'the Act of 1999'), has been rejected holding that the Family Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the application for appointment of guardian to the person with disability i.e. appellant No.1 herein.

Question of Law Involved

2. The short question of law that is involved in the appeal is, whether for the custody/guardianship of a person with disability, the Family Court would have the jurisdiction to entertain the application under Section 7 (1) read with Explanation (g) of the Family Courts Act, 1984 (for short, 'the Act of 1984') or application would lie before the appropriate Committee under Section 14(1) of the Act of 1999?

Quintessential Facts

3. Marriage between appellant No.2 herein and the respondent herein was solemnized on 15-12-2012. Appellant No.1 herein is a person with disability. She is the biological daughter of the respondent herein and appellant No.2 herein is her stepmother. Appellant No.1 is major and she is the person with disability within the meaning of Section 2(j) of the Act of 1999, as she is suffering from mental retardation. Pursuant to the matrimonial discard between appellant No.2 and the respondent, appellant No.2 got herself transferred from Raipur to Baikunthpur and started living with her mother and sister. It is the case of appellant No.2 that on 28-10-2022/29-10-2022, the respondent came to her house at Baikunthpur and started quarrelling with her mother and sister and unsuccessfully attempted to take appellant No.1 with him, but with the police intervention, it could not be done by the respondent herein leading to fling of application for guardianship before the Family Court, Manendragarh, District Koria to appoint appellant No.2 as guardian of appellant No.1 under Section 14(1) of the Act of 1999 in which the respondent filed application under Order 7 Rule 11 of the CPC that the Family Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the application and the appropriate Committee constituted under Section 14(1) of the Act of