Gujarat High Court
Judgename :M.R.MODY
BIPINCHANDRA SHANTILAL BHATT - Appellant
Versus
MADHURIBEN B.BHATT - Respondent
Civil Revision 533 of 1962
Decided On : 03/22/1963
( 1 ) THIS is one of those unfortunate matters in which a relentless and obdurate attitude has been adopted by the relations or friends advising the petitioner with a view to reducing the opponent-wife to an apparently helpless situation. The petitioner before me is the husband of the opponent. The marriage of the parties took place at Ahmedabad as far back as on December 6 1945 After this marriage the petitioner and the opponent lived and cohabited together as husband and wife. It is the opponents allegation that after her marriage the petitioner at times sometimes behaved like an insane person. The conduct of the petitioner from which the opponent came to such a conclusion was from instances of his breaking window-panes of his attempt to break doors quarrels etc. According to her his sense of discrimination between good and evil right and wrong became less and less as time went on and ultimately vanished. In 1949 she went for her delivery to Bombay to her fathers place and at that time she was informed that the petitioner had run away and was not to be found. Subsequently after he was found his name and address had to be tattooed on his hand so that if he again went away he would be restored to the house She also alleges that he was treated by one Dr. Vahiya a psychiatrist at Bombay who gave him electric shocks as and by way of treatment for his malady. Her allegation is that for the last 11 years the petitioner has been insane and this insanity has been increasing from day to day. On this allegation the opponent filed a petition for dissolution of marriage under sec. 13 (1) (iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act on the ground that the petitioner was incurable of unsound mind for a continuous period of not less than three years immediately preceding the presentation of the petition. A written statement was filed by the husband the petitioner in this petition before me. This written statement is verified not by the petitioner himself but by the mother of the petitioner. The allegation that he behaved in an insane manner was denied and it was also denied that he had run away. It was however admitted that the petitioner was treated in Bombay by Dr. Vahiya. It is stated that Dr. Vahiyas treatment was given to him because his mental health was not good. It is further stated that this treatment did him good for some time but that on account of shortage of time in the then circumstances this treatment could not be fully taken and he had to be brought back to Ahmedabad. A complaint is made that the opponent never looked after the petitioner during his medical treatment and inspite of messages that the condition of the petitioner may become very delicate if she continued to neglect him the opponent had not turned to him. It is also denied that the madness is incurable. This petition was originally filed in the Court of the learned Civil Judge Senior Division at Ahmedabad and was numbered Hindu Marriage Miscellaneous Petition No. 68 of 1960. On the establishment of the City Civil Court at Ahmedabad this petition was transferred to that Court and was numbered 721 of 1961.
( 2 ) ON April 25 1962 the opponent wife filed an application to the trial Court for an order for compulsory medical examination of the petitioner. It is stated in this application that to establish the incurable insanity of the petitioner as required by law it was necessary to have a medical examination of the petitioner. The main questions on which the opponent desired medical opinion were:- (a) Having regard to the symptoms and the condition of the petitioner and from his other examination for how many years could the petitioner have been of unsound mind and (b) whether such unsoundness of mind is incurable ? It was submitted that this was very necessary for proof of the opponents case alleged in her petition for divorce. This application came up before the learned trial Judge for disposal. The learned trial Judge held that it was necessary for the opponent
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