BHATT & SANT

In the Family Court of Australia, Justice Macmillan considered an application by the mother, Ms Bhatt, for permission to travel with the child, D, to India and for the removal of D's name from the Airport Watch List. This application was opposed by the father, Mr Sant, and the Independent Children’s Lawyer. The mother sought to travel to India to visit her ill father and take the child to a place of religious significance, having recently abandoned a prior application to relocate to India.

The central legal issues before the court were whether it was in the best interests of the child, D, to permit her removal from Australia, and consequently, whether D's name should remain on the Airport Watch List. The court was required to consider the provisions of s 68B of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), which pertains to the best interests of the child, in light of the child's young age and the developing relationship between the father and the child.

Justice Macmillan dismissed the mother's application, finding that it was not in the child's best interests to permit international travel. The court's reasoning appears to have been influenced by the mother's prior unsuccessful attempt to relocate the child to India, the child's tender age, and the importance of maintaining the father's relationship with the child. The court ordered that the mother and father be restrained from removing the child from Australia and that the child's name remain on the Airport Watch List until further order. The mother's application was dismissed.