Father is always the ‘Natural’ and Legal guardian. In absence of father, Mother is the guardian and in absence of both, the ‘Heir’ will be the guardian. The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India has held that in the absence of father, mother being the recognized natural guardian, can validly act as a guardian of her minor child.
No doubt, the Guardian will have the right of ‘Custody’ too but in given case, for the welfare of child, custody may be given to someone else than the guardian. This brings to the fore the difference between the ‘custody’ of child and ‘guardianship’ of the child.
The guardianship is purely a question of law and does not depend upon the facts and circumstances of the case. Whereas, the ‘Custody’ is purely a question of fact, in which case, welfare of the child is the paramount consideration. Thus, it may be that ‘Guardian’ may be one and the ‘Custodian’ may be someone else. But usually, the Mother is always preferred against the father for the custody of the child and when child is still suckling, mother is the only choice. But if there are some reasons for which she becomes disentitled to the custody of her child, then she may be denied the custody of her child.