No family court jurisdiction over guardianship for persons with disabilities: Chhattisgarh HC

Raipur: The Chhattisgarh high court has ruled that a family court does not have the jurisdiction to appoint a guardian for a person with mental disabilities under the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999. A division bench of Justice Sanjay K Agrawal and Justice Sachin Singh Rajput observed that the 1999 Act is a special legislation that overrides general laws like the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC) in such matters. The petitioner, a resident of Manendragarh, had been engaged in a legal battle since 2022 to be appointed as the legal guardian of her 26-year-old stepdaughter, who has a mental disability. The woman had married the daughter's father in 2012 following the death of her biological mother. After matrimonial disputes and an alleged attempt by the biological father to take the daughter away, she moved the family court for formal guardianship, but her plea was rejected on the ground that it lacked jurisdiction under the 1999 disability law. Recognising the sensitivity of the case, the high court appointed senior counsel Manoj Paranjpe and counsel Rahul Tamaskar as amicus curiae. Senior counsel Paranjpe argued that under section 13(1) of the 1999 Act, family courts are not explicitly granted power to award guardianship for disabled persons. He relied on a Madras high court judgment in the case of G Nithyanandam vs D Saritha. Advocate Tamaskar further argued that the special law must prevail over general law. HC noted that while guardianship was earlier governed by personal laws and customs, the 1999 Act now provides a comprehensive framework for the welfare and appointment of guardians for persons with disabilities.While dismissing the petition on jurisdictional grounds, the court granted the woman liberty to approach the local level committee in Koriya (Baikunthpur), which was constituted on January 19, 2026, and directed it to process the application as per the Act's rules.The judgment clarifies jurisdiction in guardianship cases involving persons with disabilities, holding that the 1999 Act is a self-contained code and that civil and family courts cannot assume jurisdiction. It stresses that statutory welfare mechanisms must be followed and is expected to serve as an important precedent on the role of courts versus specialised bodies in disability rights cases.