Don’t gossip about each other in front of kids as parenthood continues even after divorce, Karnataka HC tells couple on dissolution of marriage

View of Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court, while allowing them to dissolve the marriage, ordered them to refrain from making disparaging remarks against each other in the presence or during the hearing of their two minor daughters.

In addition, the court urged them to make every effort to ensure that the children can maintain a loving, healthy and undisturbed relationship with both parents, noting that “both parties (parents) bear in mind that notwithstanding the dissolution of their marital relationship, they continue to be the children’s parents.”

A Division Bench comprising Justice DK Singh and Justice H Shanthi Bhushan passed the order while disposing of a plea reducing the alimony awarded to the wife, a medical practitioner, by the family court to ₹ 50 lakh from ₹ 2 crore, considering her financial situation, independent source of income and her own financial assets.

However, the court ordered the husband to pay ₹25,000 per month per child for their maintenance, education, medical expenses and other reasonable needs until the children, who remain in their mother’s custody, reach majority, with an annual increase of ₹5,000 per child.

Marriages of children

The Bench said that notwithstanding the annulment of the marriage, the father of the children should continue to fulfill his parental obligations towards them and at the appropriate time, especially at the time of their marriage, make a reasonable contribution to the marital expenses of each child, with love and affection and to the extent of his financial means.

While granting the father permanent visitation rights for two days a week, the Bench said that the mother should extend reasonable cooperation to ensure that she can exercise those rights meaningfully and without undue hindrance. The bench also directed that the children should not be relocated without the knowledge of the father or the permission of the competent court whenever necessary.

Apart from physical visitation rights, the Bench granted the father the right to communicate with the children by phone or WhatsApp/video calls in urgent cases for a reasonable time keeping in view their age, school schedule and other activities. However, the Bench made it clear that both parents should ensure that “such communication takes place peacefully and without exposing the children to disputes or differences between the parents”.

Published – 15 September 2026 22:40 IST