The judgment emphasizes the need to prove grounds for divorce and the concept of irretrievable breakdown of marriage.

( 1 ) BY impugned judgment and decree the trial Court dismissed the petition for divorce under S. 13 of the Hindu marriage Act, 1955 (Act for short) by the husband against the Hindu wife and allowed counter claim for recovery of Stridhan of the respondent wife from the appellant husband.

( 2 ) PARTIES were married on 5-5-1992 and cohabited in Gwalior. They had Ku. Puja, born in Dec. 1993 as an offspring.

( 3 ) AS per petition, the respondent wife treated the appellant and his mother with cruelty. She used to abuse and beat the mother and even the appellant. In Dec. 1992 she brought a pesticide and threatened to commit suicide in case the mother of appellant was not shifted out of the house. Several times the respondent would lock the house and go somewhere to return only at 10 or 11 p. m. in night. She would not be available at home at time of his return from work. On asking she would abuse him and say that he has no right to check her. In may 1994, the brother of respondent had taken her with him without consent of the appellant. She had taken with her, her own ornaments, clothes and even the ornaments of the mother of the appellant. When the appellant went to her parents house, the mother and brother of respondent fought with him, assaulted him and threatened to kill him. The appellant with his relative manohar Lal tried twice to bring back the respondent but was unsuccessful. Her mother and brother proposed that the appellant would have to live there as a gharjamai at Ranipur. The appellant had come to know that the respondent had some illicit relations with someone and thus she was not ready to come back to her marital home. Hence, the petition.

( 4 ) THE respondent has denied all such allegations. She has claimed that in her marriage, a fridge, a Bajaj Super Scooter, a sofa-set, double-bed, Cooler, gold ornaments of 3 tolas, Rs. 40,000/- in cash and other domestic utensils etc. were gifted. However, after their marriage appellant started demanding Herohonda, Colour TV and Rs. 50,000/- more as dowry and on non-fulfilment of such a demand he started neglecting the respondent. The claim of the appellant that the respondent treated him or his mother cruelly is denied. According to her, all such allegations are false. She never brought pesticide neither threatened to commit suicide nor insisted for shifting the mother of the appellant somewhere else. On other hand, the appellant himself had tried to push her neck and was saved by the neighbours. Appellant has illicit relations with one of his office colleagues named Ikka and wanted to marry with her. His mother had also supported him. The allegation that the respondent used to lock the house and go somewhere and abuse the appellant or his mother and that the brother of respondent had taken her away with her ornaments or ornaments of the mother are denied. In the year 1996, the appellant himself had taken respondent to her parent's house on the pretext that her mother was sick and left her there and had returned back to gwalior. When the respondent and her mother came to Gwalior. The appellant locked the house and would not let them enter. The appellant had never attempted to bring her back. He never went with Manohar lal to her parent's house. Appellant himself had left the respondent at her parent's house and is not ready to take her back. He has kept her Stridhan which she is entitled to get back. She has claimed Rs. 2000/- per month as maintenance allowance. She has counter-claimed return of her Stridhan.

( 5 ) TRIAL Court did not find proved any ground for divorce. She held that the appellant himself was to blame and was guilty of cruelty and adultery. Thus, no decree for divorce was given. However, counter-claim for return of Stridhan was allowed.

( 6 ) THE appellant had pleaded specific acts of the respondent to prove his allegation of cruelty against the respondent. I proceed to examine each of them one by one.

( 7 ) FIRSTLY, according to him, the respo