IMPORTANT POINTS
Right of residence in shared household u/s 17 of DV Act can be invoked if there has been domestic relationship u/s 2(f) which requires living in shared household u/s 2(s).
It will be proper to transfer an appeal from ASJ to the High Court as it negates an additional forum of scrutiny in the form of revision before the High Court.

JUDGMENT

SANJAY KISHAN KAUL, J.

1. The appellant is 84 years old and the respondent is 62 years old. The respondent seeks to establish her status as the wife/companion of the appellant who has been left high and dry by the appellant while on the other hand the appellant categorically denies any such status.

2. The admitted facts are that the respondent was married to one Shri Harish Chander Chhabra. That marriage did not work out and ultimately a consent decree for divorce was obtained on 10.10.1996. Even in the interregnum period, the respondent claims to have developed a relationship with the appellant starting from their introduction in 1987. It is her case that there was continuous interaction between the two and the appellant even proposed to her in December 1993. The appellant earned a National Award on 16.10.1996. The respondent also claims to have been requested to travel with the appellant to Bangalore on 30.10.1996. The appellant’s wife was alive when the respondent claims that the appellant took her to No.38/1, Jayanagar, Bengaluru and that the appellant’s wife was apparently also aware of the relationship between the two parties. The respondent claims that she resigned from the job with ICAR at the behest of the appellant. On 10.1.1998, the respondent claims that the appellant applied “kumkum” to her forehead and soon thereafter he was conferred with the Padma Shri Award and the respondent accompanied the appellant for the felicitation ceremony on 21.3.1998.

3. It is the respondent’s claim that from 2002-2008 the respondent was made to stay in different residences hired by the appellant. But apparently the relationship soured. The endeavors for reconciliation, however, did not succeed. The wife of the appellant was incidentally alive at that time and she passed away on 22.2.2010. The endeavor, prior to this, by the respondent seeking remedy for what she claims to be her neglect, through the Women and Child Welfare Department of State of Karnataka, also did not succeed.

4. The respondent claims to have made various efforts by approaching authorities and high dignitaries apart from police authorities but to no avail.

5. The respondent initiated proceedings under Section 12 of The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the D.V. Act’) on 16.9.2013 being Criminal Misc. Petition No.179 of 2013. This case is stated to have been re-numbered as Crl. Misc. Application No.139 of 2015. The endeavor of the appellant seeking quashing of these proceedings before the High Court vide Criminal Writ Petition No.6126/2013 under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the Cr.P.C.) did not succeed and petition was dismissed on 2.1.2015. The trial went on and at the request of the respondent made under Section 410 of the Cr.P.C., the application was transferred from the Court of the Metropolitan Magistrate–VI to the Court of Metropolitan Magistrate-II at Bangalore. This application was finally dismissed by the learned Metropolitan Magistrate on 30.7.2015.

6. The respondent, aggrieved by the said order, filed Criminal Appeal No.1070/2015 under Section 29 of the D.V. Act on 18.8.2015 which was assigned to the learned Addl. Sessions Judge presiding over Court 67. The interim relief prayed for in this petition was, however, rejected by the learned Addl. Sessions Judge on 5.11.2015.

7. The respondent again sought a transfer from that court and the appeal was transferred to the Court of the learned Additional Sessions Judge presiding over Court No.53 vide order dated 16.2.2016. A second application was filed by the respondent for stay of the impugned order for interim maintenance. The respondent was once again aggrieved by the conduct of the proceedings during the hearing of the interim application and submitted a complaint to the High Court of Karnataka. In terms of an administrative order of the Registrar General of the High Court, the application was called upon