Bangalore (PTI): "How long can sweetened lollipops replace a need for father," asks a 60-year-old grandmother whose little grandaughter is handed over a lollipop by her mother every time she wants to know about the whereabouts of her father who is fighting a custody battle for the child.

Neha, is among the scores of grandparents, questioning the legality of the system whereby long drawn out custody cases between spouses were taking a toll on their patience and subjecting them to mental trauma of waiting to be reunited with their grandchildren.

Neha, who is part of Child Rights Initiative for Shared Parenting (CRISP), a newly formed organisation that demands equal right of parenting in divorced cases, says the bitter fight between spouses often leaves grandparents and children as innocent victims for little or no fault of theirs.

"My daughter-in-law decided to one day walk out from the house but in the process we have been denied access to the grandchild. What is our fault. We have to wait till our son gains rights to see his children," she says.

The law generally favours mothers in case of custody battle as well as during the interim period of the cases when interim custody is given to the mother. The set of paternal grandparents are often left fighting loneliness and depression at their ties suddenly being severed by their children's animosity, said Kumar Jahgirdar, President of CRISP.

Couples walking out of an acrimonious marriage is common but what is becoming even common is that the animosity is often carried to the level of ensuring that ties with grandparents are also severed, says a CRISP activist.