A Habeas Corpus petition regarding a missing spouse and children is maintainable for discovery and safety, but the Court's jurisdiction is limited to locating them and does not extend to adjudicating permanent child custody, which must be pursued through appropriate independent civil proceedings.

Prayer :Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India to issue a writ of Habeas Corpus Petition, to direct the respondent to secure and produce the body or person of the petitioner's wife and children, namely, Shanthi (aged 39 years), Kali Sri (aged about 17 years), Ganga Sri (aged about 15 years) and Surya Pandian (aged 11 years) before this Court and set them at liberty.

ORDER

(Order of the Court was made by N. ANAND VENKATESH,J.)

This Habeas Corpus Petition has been filed for a direction to the respondents to secure the detenue and the three children and to set them at liberty.

2. Heard the learned counsel on either side.

3. The case of the petitioner is that he was married to the detenue in the year 2007 and there are three children out of the wedlock. Due to some misunderstanding, there was a quarrel on 15.05.2026. From 17.05.2026, the detenue along with three children were missing and in spite of best efforts, their whereabouts were not able to be ascertained. Under such circumstances, a complaint came to be filed before the respondent, based on which, an FIR came to be registered in Crime No.183 of 2026 on 19.05.2026. Since no effort was taken to find the whereabouts of the detenue and the three children, the present Habeas Corpus Petition has been filed.

4. Taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case and the nature of grievance expressed by the petitioner and more particularly, considering the interest of the three children, who have gone along with the detenue, there shall be a direction to the respondent to find the whereabouts of the detenue and the three children and produce them before the learned Judicial Magistrate No.IV, Tirunelveli. The learned Judicial Magistrate shall record the statement of the detenue and proceed further in accordance with law.

5. This Habeas Corpus Petition is disposed of in the above terms.

6. It is made clear that this direction is issued only for the purpose of ascertaining the reason for which the detenue had gone out of the matrimonial home along with the three children and it cannot be expanded to decide the custody of the children, which has to be done only through independent proceedings.