Japanese mother finally gets custody of two children

A family court in Dhaka on Sunday gave custody of two children to their mother and Japanese citizen Eriko Nakano.

Judge Durrana Rahman of Dhaka Family Court pronounced the judgment, saying the mother can take her daughters Makano Jasmine Malika and Makano Laila Lina to Japan with her. The court said it reached the decision focusing on the well-being of the two children.

Eriko Nakano married Bangladesh-born US citizen Imran Sharif in 2008 in Japan. They became parents of three children after that. In 2020, Eriko filed a divorce petition with a Japanese court. Imran later took two of their daughters with him and came to Bangladesh.

Eriko too came to Bangladesh and filed a petition with the apex court for the custody of the two children.

The High Court on August 31, 2021, ordered Imran Sharif and Nakano Eriko to live at a Gulshan flat together for 15 days with their two daughters. The court had asked the Department of Social Services to look over the matter and the Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police is being asked to ensure the safety of this family.

The court finally came up with its order as the estranged couple failed to reach a consensus on where and with whom their two daughters Makano Jasmine Malika and Makano Laila Lina will live, in spite of repeated instructions from the court.

The Supreme Court however, on February 13, 2022, said, until the disposal of the case by the Dhaka family court, the two children will remain in the custody of their mother, while their father can meet them in the house.