JUDGMENT

P.N. Sawant, J. - Leave is granted. Appeal is taken on board for final hearing by consent of parties.

The 1st appellant and the 1st. respondent were married at Tirupati on February 27, 1975. They separated in July 1978. The 1st appellant filed a petition for dissolution of marriage in the Circuit Court of St Louis County Missouri, USA. The 1st respondent sent her reply from here under protest The Circuit Court passed a decree for dissolution of marriage on February 19, 1980 in the absence of the 1st respondent.

2. The 1st appellant had earlier filed a petition for dissolution of marriage in the sub-Court of Tirupati being O.P. No. 87 n.6. In that petition, the 1st appellant filed an application for dismissing the same as not pressed in view of the decree passed by the Missouri Court. On August 14, 1981 the learned sub-Judge of Tirupati dismissed the petition.

3. On November 2, 1981, the 1st appellant married the 2nd appellant in Yadgirigutta. Hence, 1st respondent filed a criminal complaint against the appellants for the offence of bigamy. It is not necessary to refer to the details of the proceedings in the said complaint. Suffice it to say that in that complaint, the app