Structured overnight visitation: a practical Sindh High Court model

Facts

From the judgment

The father applied under sections 7, 10 and 25 of the Guardians and Wards Act for his daughter, then about 7-8. On 17 April 2023 the Family Judge, Jacobabad, gave him meetings on the first and third Saturdays of each month from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at court, on payment of Rs. 500 a meeting, plus a meeting after each Eid. (para 1)

His appeal was dismissed on 25 May 2024, with an observation that on attaining puberty the girl's custody would remain with the mother. (para 2)

In the High Court he said he had paid the amounts ordered, owed Rs. 130,000 in maintenance arrears which he would pay in instalments, and paid Rs. 12,000 a month with a 10% annual increase. (paras 4, 9)

The mother agreed to conditions (i), (v), (vi), (viii) and (xi) of Madiha Younus with modifications, did not agree to (ii), (iii), (iv) and (vii), and said (ix) was not required; her counsel relied on PLD 2026 SC 238 on the child's wishes. (paras 6, 10)

Procedural history

From the judgment

1. 17 April 2023Guardianship Application No. 25 of 2022 (ss.7, 10, 25 GWA), Family Judge, JacobabadCustody with mother; father two three-hour court meetings a month at Rs. 500 each, plus post-Eid meetings (para 1)
2. 25 May 2024Family Appeal No. 02 of 2023, Additional District Judge-I, JacobabadDismissed; custody to remain with the mother after puberty (para 2)
3. 9 October 2026C.P. No. S-318 of 2024, Sindh High Court, Circuit Court LarkanaDisposed of with a structured overnight and holiday visitation schedule; arrears to be paid within three months (para 12-13)

Questions of law

1. Should the father's contact be limited to short court-supervised meetings, or can he have overnight and holiday time with the child? Our framing

   The court's answer: He can have structured overnight and holiday contact. The child's closer attachment to the mother does not deprive the father of contact and company; the schedule followed Madiha Younus so far as the mother agreed. (para 9-12)

Arguments

From the judgment

Petitioner or appellant

As the father he is entitled to reasonable visitation; he had paid the amounts ordered and would pay the Rs. 130,000 maintenance arrears in instalments; he confined his prayer to the conditions laid down in Madiha Younus v. Imran Ahmed (2018 SCMR 1991) (para 4).

Respondent

The mother accepted conditions (i), (v), (vi), (viii) and (xi) of Madiha Younus with modifications but not (ii), (iii), (iv) and (vii); her counsel relied on PLD 2026 SC 238 that the child's wishes and consent are relevant to visitation and custody (para 6).

Court's reasoning

From the judgment

The father's right to contact

After divorce a child may be more attached to the mother, but that does not wholly deprive the father of contact with the child and of the child's company. The father had offered to clear the arrears and keep paying Rs. 12,000 a month with a 10% yearly increase; the Law Officer supported visitation on suitable conditions. (para 7, 9)

The Madiha Younus model

The Court set out the eleven conditions in Madiha Younus v. Imran Ahmed (2018 SCMR 1991): custody with the mother, alternate weekends, four summer weeks, a winter week, both Eids, alternate holidays, school and other expenses, a monthly allowance, family occasions, and neither parent turning the child against the other. It adopted them in modified form, taking account of which conditions the mother accepted. (para 10-12)

The schedule ordered

Custody stays with the mother. The father has the child from about 9 a.m. on the first Saturday of every month (collected at the Family Court, Jacobabad) until 1 p.m. on Sunday (returned at Police Station Airport, Jacobabad); one week from the first Sunday of the summer holidays; 25 to 27 December, returned on 28 December; and the second day of Eid-ul-Fitr and the third day of Eid-ul-Adha, returned the next day. The SHO or duty officer must ensure handovers. (para 12(a)-(f))

Maintenance and conduct

The father must pay the outstanding maintenance within three months and keep paying monthly maintenance as fixed by the courts below. Both parents must not prejudice the child against the other or harm her relationship with either parent. A copy was sent to the SSP, Jacobabad, for compliance. (para 12(g)-(h), 13)

Judicial observations

From the judgment

The court's exact words.

Practical implications

Our analysis

For lawyers

• Ask for a specific visitation schedule modelled on Madiha Younus (2018 SCMR 1991): overnight weekends, school-holiday blocks and Eid days, with exact times and handover points.
• Where handovers are contentious, ask for a neutral handover place and a direction to the local SHO to ensure compliance.
• Clear or offer to clear maintenance arrears; the court tied the schedule to payment of arrears within three months.
• Record which conditions the custodial parent accepts; the court built its order around that consent.

For everyone else

• A father whose child lives with the mother can ask the court for overnight stays and holiday time, not just a few hours at court.
• The court can set exact pick-up and drop-off times and places and ask the police to make sure they happen.
• Paying the child's maintenance on time matters; the court ordered arrears cleared within three months.

General points drawn from this judgment, not advice on your own case.

Limits of this judgment

Our analysis

• The schedule was shaped by what the mother agreed to on the record; it is a model, not a fixed entitlement for every case.
• The mother's counsel did not appear at the final hearing; the Court noted the earlier submissions (para 5).
• The Court did not rule on the effect of PLD 2026 SC 238 on the child's wishes.

Related

Our guide

• The Best Child Custody and Guardianship Lawyers in Pakistan

Discussed in our brief

• Pakistan Family Law: Talaq & Visitation, wife’s talaq notice