NEW DELHI: An Indian court has denied an HIV-positive woman custody of her eight-year-old daughter, a rights activist said yesterday.

The woman, who married a soldier from northwestern Rajasthan state in the late 1990s without knowing that he was HIV positive, said Kavita Srivastav, state convener of the People's Union for Civil Liberties, a private rights group.

Her husband died four years ago. After his death her in-laws began ill-treating the woman and took her daughter on the grounds that the mother had become HIV positive, Srivastav said.

She moved to her parents' home and later approached a court in Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, for custody of her daughter.

The court rejected her plea earlier this week, ruling that she would not able to take care of her daughter because of her HIV-positive status, Srivastav said.

The People's Union for Civil Liberties challenged the verdict in an appeals court in Jaipur.

The court put the lower court decision on hold and has agreed to hear the petition, according to the woman's attorney, Ajay Jain.