1999 (2) Crimes 345
KERALA HIGH COURT
K.A. Mohamed Shaft. J.
Nizar - Petitioner
versus
Hyrunneessa - Respondent
Crl. M.C. No. 3817-1997
Decided on 17-2-1999
Counsel for the parties:
For the Petitioner: Mr. Kunhikrishnan, Advocate.
For the Respondent: Mr. T.G. Rajendran. Advocate & Mr. P.N. Sukumaran. P.P.
(ii) Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986 -Section 3 (1) - Reasonable and fair maintenance - Applicant wife remarrying during pendency of petition --Remarriage of divorced woman is no criterion while determining reasonable and fair provision - Magistrate limited quantum of reasonable and fair provision to five years maintenance at the rate of Rs. 1500/- p.m. - Contention that quantum should have been restricted from date of expiry of period of iddat till date of her remarriage was not sustainable. (Paras 9 & 11)
(iii) Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986 Section 3(1) - Reasonable and fair provision - Means of former husband, standard of life enjoyed by her during marriage and needs of divorced woman have to be taken into consideration. (Para 9)
(iv) Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986 Section 3(3) - Order for reasonable and fair provision should be passed within one month of date of filing of application - Word "may" need in the section is to mean "shall" - However -failure of Magistrate to record reasons for delay in disposal of application will not render the order invalid or unsustainable. (Paras 12 & 13)
(v) Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986 - Section 3(1)(d) - Rs. 50,000/- awarded to applicant-wife, for the amount paid by her father at the time of marriage - No tangible evidence to establish that account of Rs. 50,000/- was given by father of respondent to petitioner as gift - Impugned order directing- petitioner to pay this amount was illegal and resulted in manifest injustice. (Paras 18 &: 19)
(vi) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 - Section 482 - Petition against order passed by Trial Court and confirmed in revision by Sessions Court - Scope –If lower courts committed any error of law in arriving at findings or order resulted in manifest injustice High Court was competent to exercise inherent jurisdiction u/s. 482 Cr. P.C. (Para 4)
Result: Petition allowed partly.
ORDER
K.A. Mohamed Shafi, J. - This Crl. M.C. is filed by the respondent in M.C. No. 3/1994 on the file of the Judicial First Class Magistrate's Court. Payyoli to quash Annexures-A and Borders passed by the trial court and the revisional court against the petitioner.
2. The M.C. was filed by the 1st respondent against the petitioner claiming amounts under S. 3 of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986. The trial court after trial by order dated 18-5-1996 directed the petitioner to pay the 1st respondent Rs. 10.500/- being the value of the balance mahar of 31/2 sovereigns. Rs. 4500/- being the maintenance during the period of iddat Rs. 30,000/ - being the value of 10 sovereigns of gold ornaments. Rs. 50.000/- given to the petitioner by the father of the 1st respondent and Rs. 90.000/- by way of future maintenance. The petitioner assailed that order before the Sessions Court. Kozhikode in Crl. R.P. No. 44/96. The revisional court allowed the revision in part and confirmed the order passed by the trial court directing the petitioner to pay Rs. 4500/ - being maintenance during the period of Iddat. Rs. 50.000/-being the amount given to the petitioner by the father of the 1st respondent and Rs. 90.000/- being the reasonable and fair provision and disallowed the other amounts allowed by the' trial court. This M.C. is filed to quash the order passed by the trial court and the revisional court awarding those amounts.
3. The 1st respondent has contended that the above Crl. M.C. being in the nature of a second revision is not maintainable and under the guise of a proceeding under S. 482 of the Cr. P.C. and this Court cannot reappraise the evidence and set aside the concurrent findings of fact arrived at by the trial court as well as the revisional court. But it is contended by the petitioner that he is only placing before this Court the errors of law committed by the courts below by accepting the evidence on record.
4. It is well settled that if the lower courts had committed any error of law in arriving at the findings or the orders passed by the courts below have resulted in manifest injustice, this Court is competent to exercise its inherent jurisdiction under S. 482 of the Cr. P.C. to rectify the mistake committed by the lower courts.
5. The counsel for the petitioner submitted that it is clear from the statement of objects and reasons for the enactment of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act that the law was enacted to provide the Muslim divorced women for a reasonable' and fair provision for maintenance within the period of Iddat by her former husband. He also argued that by interpreting the provisions of S. 3 (1), of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act a Division Bench of this court in the decision in Aliyar v. Pathu1 has observed as follows:
"Besides paying maintenance to the divorced wife for the Iddat, former husband has to provide reasonably and fairly for the future needs of the divorced wife i.e. for use of the divorced wife after the period of Iddat period and till her marriage or death."
Therefore he submitted that what is contemplated under S. 3 (1) of the Act is payment of maintenance to the divorced wife till her re-marriage or death. He also argued that in this case it is admitted by the 1st respondent that she got re-married during the above proceedings before the trial court and therefore she was entitled to reasonable and fair provision provided under S. 3(1) of the Act only from the date of expiry, of Iddat period till her re-marriage. Therefore according to him the award of Rs. 90.000/- being reasonable and fair provisions to the 1st respondent in this case by the trial court and confirmation of that finding by the revisional court are absolutely illegal and unsustainable.
6. The trial court directed the petitioner to pay Rs. 90,000/ - being reasonable and fair provision by calculating maintenance for five years at the rate of Rs. 1500/- per mensem. The a
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