SC rejects Japanase woman’s plea to go abroad with her kids

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a Japanese woman's plea to go abroad with her two children.

A six-member full bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique, also dismissed a contempt plea of the Japanese woman, Nakano Erico, to haul her estranged husband, Bangladesh-born US citizen Imran Sharif.

Besides, the court also refused to entertain Imran's contempt plea against Erico for "disobeying an earlier court order".

On 17 May, Erico's counsel Sishir Monir appealed to the Appellate Division seeking permission for his client to travel abroad with her two children.

Erico has spent many days in Bangladesh with her two daughters and wants to go abroad for a vacation that can be to Japan, according to the plea.

At the same time, Erico asked the court to press contempt of court charges against Imran for not following the Supreme Court's order on meeting their two children.

Later, Imran also filed a contempt of court plea against Erico alleging disobedience of the High Court order to allow him to meet their two children.

On 13 February, the Appellate Division ordered disposal of the case within three months over the custody of the two children of Imran and Erico at a family court. 

During this period, the court made it clear that the two daughters will stay with their Japanese mother in Bangladesh. And Imran can meet them but can't leave the country.

As per the order of the Appellate Division, the two children have been in the custody of their mother since 12 December last year. However, their father can visit them everyday at a convenient time between 9am and 9pm.

On 21 November last year, the HC bench of justices M Enayetur Rahim and Md Mostafizur Rahman ruled that the Japan-born daughters of Imran and Erico will stay with their father.

However, the mother can exclusively meet the daughters, aged 11 and 10, three times a year for 10 days at a time and Imran, the father, will have to bear her travel and accommodation expenses, the court had said.

On 5 December, Erico filed a petition with the Appellate Division challenging the High Court's order.

After 12 years of marriage, on 18 January last year, Erico, a physician, appealed for divorce from engineer Imran over marital dispute.

On 28 January 2021, she also filed a case with a Tokyo family court for the custody of their three children.

But on 21 February, Imran returned to Bangladesh with their two girls from Japan. After that a Japanese court passed an order giving the children under their mother's custody.

On 19 August, Erico filed a writ petition in the High Court here seeking custody of the two girls.