The main legal point established in the judgment is the significance of the statutory period for divorce by mutual consent under section 13-B (2) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and the court's limited authority to waive this period.

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith and heard the learned counsel for petitioners.

2. The petitioners are before this court aggrieved by order dated 8th April, 2015 passed by learned Civil Judge, Senior Division, Jalgaon, in Hindu Marriage Petition No. 83 of 2015, rejecting their request to waive statutory period required under section 13-B (2) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 for divorce by mutual consent.

3. The facts as emerging are that, petitioner No. 1 is wife whereas petitioner No. 2 is husband. Their marriage was solemnized on 15-04-2012 at Sangmeshwar, however, the couple could reside together hardly for four days and from 19-04-2012, petitioner No. 1 started residing with her parents, having moved out of matrimonial house, due to incompatibility and temperamental issues. Attempts to reconcile relations have failed and ultimately the petitioners purported to take divorce on 14-12-2014 under aegis of respected members of their community, by execution of an affidavit. The petitioners had decided not to claim any monetary benefits from each other and had also undertaken not to lodge any cases against each other and further agreed to file proceedings for divorce by mutual consent.

4. Accordingly, Hindu Marriage Petition No. 83 of 2015 seeking dissolution of marriage and divorce by mutual consent was filed on 18-02-2015 in the court of Civil Judge, Senior Division, Jalgaon. The learned Judge having regard to requirement of intervening statutory period of six months for divorce by mutual consent, has kept next date in the matter on 18-08-2015.

5. During pendency of said proceedings, the petitioners had filed an application Exhibit-10 on 08-04-2015 seeking waiver of expiry of the statutory period. Petitioners had referred to that the marriage has been dissolved before the community and their relationship as husband and wife has come to an end. The petitioners are not at all interested to cohabit with each other. It is referred to in the application that they are young and their second marriage is also arranged. In view of aforesaid, they prayed for waiver of expiry of statuary period of six months prescribed under section 13-B (2) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and for passing decree of divorce by mutual consent.

6. Section 13-B (2) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 reads thus -

“13-B Divorce by mutual consent –

(1) …....

(2) On the motion of both the parties made not earlier than six months after the date of the presentation of the petition referred to in sub-section (1) and not later than eighteen months after the said date, if the petition is not withdrawn in the meantime, the Court shall, on being satisfied, after hearing the parties and after making such inquiry as it thinks fit, that a marriage has been solemnized and that the averments in the petition are true, pass a decree of divorce declaring the marriage to be dissolved with effect from the date of the decree”.

7. It appears that decision of this court in writ petition No. 1381 of 2010 (RakeshParekh Vs. State of Maharashtra) as well as decision of learned single judge in the case of SauSonali W/o Manishkumar Chandak and another Vs. Nil reported in 2008 (1) All MR 227 were relied on. The court had considered that in the case of RakeshParekh, he had already filed a petition for divorce under section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and as such, decision in said case would not be applicable to the request, for, facts would not be similar. It appears to have been considered by the court that the decision in the case of SauSonali referred to above had been in view of exceptional hardship being faced, the High Court under inherent powers was pleased to grant waiver of statutory period, and as such, said decision would not apply to present situation. The court, as such, went on to reject application under Exhibit-10.

8. The petitioners with a view to support their request for waiver of expiry of six month period pursuant to section 13-B(2) of the Hindu Ma