If a woman says she is not married and subsequently a man marries her, and after that someone claims that the woman is his wife, in the event that the person’s claim is not legally established to be correct (ṣaḥīḥ), his word must not be accepted. Ruling 2476.* A father cannot separate a son or daughter from his/her mother before he/she completes two years of age, because looking after a child [up to the age of two] is a right that is shared between the father and the mother.
The recommended precaution is that a child should not be separated from his mother until he completes seven years of age; in fact, if separating the child would be harmful for him, it is not permitted.