Bhargava, J.

1. This is a Plaintiff's appeal arising out of the petition made to the Additional District Judge, Betul, for judicial separation under Section 10 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (hereinafter called the 'Act').

2. The petition is grounded on two incidents of cruelty alleged to have taken place in the year 1950 and 1955 with a further averment that the Defendant-Respondent persisted in various acts of beating the Plaintiff during the course of her stay with him.

Details of the two incidents are given by the Plaintiff as under:

(i) That in the year 1950 when the Appellant and cooked rice, the Respondent on the allegation that it was not properly cooked, pierced a hot Koncha (an edged instrument used for cooking) into her both the legs and when the injuries started bleeding, chillies were put in the injured pans. She suffered from those injuries for six months at her father's house.

(ii) That on assurances of good behaviour being given by the brother of her husband to the Panchas of the village, she returned to reside with the Respondent and lived with him for about 4 years. Then in the year 1955 on the false allegation that she had sold some pulses belonging to the Re