( 1 ) THIS is an appeal by Satjit Singh against the order, dated 4th February, 1965, of Shri M. L. Jain, one of the Additional District Judges at Delhi, striking oil his delence in a petition for dissolution of marriage brought against him by his wife Shrimati Amarjit Kaur for non-payment of litigation expenses and maintenance pendente lite, which was awarded to the wife by an earlier order of the Court under section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1956.

( 2 ) IT has been veheroently argued that the learned Additional District Judge had no power to strike off the appellant s defence, and even if he was of the view that the appellant was contumaciously refusing to comply with the order of payment under section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, he could at best proceed to take action for contempt against the appellant but had no jurisdiction to deprive him of his defence.

( 3 ) ON the other hand, it is "cotended on behalf of the respondent wife that the Court has ample power to prevent abuse of its process and to see that there is no interference with the course of justice by the husband refusing to pay litigation expenses to the wife who has been compelled to come to th