Proceedings for maintenance under Section 488 of the Code of Criminal Procedure can be started in any district where the opposite party resides or is, or where the parties last resided.

1. This revisional application has been filed by Rama Nath Sardar, the petitioner before this Court who was the second party in the court below against the order passed under Section 488 of the Code of Criminal Procedure by the Police Magistrate at Sealdah, 24-Parganas, upon an application filed by Rekha Rani Sardar who was the first party before him.

2. In short, the allegation of the first party Rekha Rani Sardar, the wife of Rama Nath Sardar, is that she was married to Rama Nath and in their wedlock two children were born. At first a female child died and thereafter a male child was born. He is of course alive. Rama Nath is a manufacturer of paper boxes. The allegation is that he spends a lot of money for his mistress. The further allegation is that Rama Nath assaults and illtreats Rekha Rani and due to the habitual illtreatment she had to take shelter in the house of her parents to get rid of the assaults. She was driven out by Ramanath from his house and she had to leave the place of the husband with the tiny daughter who was aged about 7 or 8 months. At that time she was also pregnant. The husband subsequently gave an undertaking in writing that he would treat his wife well and would also sever all connections with his mistress. Rama Nath, however, did not keep his word and he did not take his wife and child back to his own place. The story of the first party is that she has been compelled to maintain herself and the child by being. In these circumstances, the wife prayed for an order upon the husband to pay a sum of Rs. 100/- for her maintenance and Rs. 50/- for the child. The husband, Ramnath filed a written objection to the petition. His defence was that the Police Magistrate at Sealdah had no jurisdiction to deal with the case, that he never neglected or assaulted or abused the wife that he had no mistress as alleged, that his income did not exceed Rs. 125/- per month and that his wife instituted the case with false allegations at the instance of her mother, brother and other relations. Rama Nath has further stated in the objection that he wrote a letter under pressure that he was willing to take the petitioner to his place.

3. The learned Magistrate found that he had jurisdiction to hear the case. He also held that there were assaults and illtreatment by the husband upon the wife and that the petitioner-wife had been driven away by Rama Nath. The learned Magistrate did not believe that the husband was willing to take back the wife. With regard to the allegation about keeping the mistress it was found that although he had mistress previously his subsequent living in adultery with that mistress had not been proved. On consideration of the evidence and the circumstances his finding was that the wife was justified according to law to demand maintenance and he directed the second party-husband to pay a sum of Rs. 70/- for the wife and a sum of Rs. 30/- for the child towards their maintenance. The order was to take effect from the month of February, 1973.

4. Mr. Das Gupta appears on behalf of the petitioner Rama Nath and Mr. Sanyal for Rekha Rani, the Opposite Party, before this Court. The first point urged by Mr. Das Gupta is that in view of the provision of Section 488 of the Code of Criminal Procedure the Magistrate at Sealdah had no jurisdiction to deal with the case because the evidence shows that the parties lived together for the last time within the jurisdiction of a Magistrate at Alipore, 24-Parganas. The relevant portion of Section 488 of Criminal Procedure Code will appear in a Section (8) thereof which runs as follows :-

"Proceedings under this section may be taken against any person in any district where he resides or is, or where he last resided with his wife, or, as the may be, the mother of the illegitimate child."

The above Sub-Section says that the wife-petitioner coming under Section 488 for maintenance may start proceedings for such maintenance against her husband or the father of the illegitimate