Muslim mother can be appointed guardian of child's property: Orissa HC

The Orissa High Court has ruled that a Muslim mother can be appointed by a court as guardian of her minor daughter's property, and allowed a widowed mother in Odisha to sell the girl's undivided share in family property for the child's welfare, under strict conditions. Justice Sanjay Kumar Mishra set aside a District Judge's order at Berhampur that had refused the mother's request. The court held that, under Muslim personal law, a mother is not the guardian of her child's property as of right, but a court can appoint her under the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, when that serves the child's welfare. The judgment, in a guardianship appeal registered in 2024, was reported by legal news outlets in the last week of October 2026.

For many widowed mothers, the hardest part of holding a family together after a husband's death is not only grief but paperwork. Property often stands in the names of several family members, and a child's share cannot simply be sold or used by a parent to pay for school fees or daily needs. Under Muslim personal law, as the court noted, guardianship of a minor's property does not pass to the mother automatically. In practice this can leave a mother responsible for raising a child while having no legal power over the assets meant to support that child.

The ruling shows the route the law offers in such cases. A mother can ask a court to appoint her as guardian of the child's property under the Guardians and Wards Act, a law that applies to all communities. The court then looks at one question above all: what is good for the child. In this case the High Court found that the lower court had shut the door without asking that question. By appointing the mother, while tying her hands with conditions and requiring the child's money to be kept safe in a fixed deposit or approved investment, the court tried to balance two needs: the family's present need for money and the child's right to her own share in the future.

Short-term: The widowed mother in this case can now proceed with the sale of her daughter's share within the limits and seven conditions set by the High Court.

Long-term: The ruling gives lower courts in Odisha a clear direction to consider appointing mothers as property guardians in similar cases, instead of rejecting such petitions outright, and may be cited in other courts.

Who is affected: Widowed and single Muslim mothers raising minor children, families with property held jointly with minors, family lawyers, and district courts that hear guardianship petitions.

Questions and Answers