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SHREEKANT NEELAPPA TERDAL

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CASE NO.:

Appeal (civil) 5185 of 2001

PETITIONER:

M.M. MALHOTRA

RESPONDENT:

UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

DATE OF JUDGMENT: 04/10/2005

BENCH:

ARIJIT PASAYAT & H.K. SEMA

JUDGMENT:

JUDGMENT

ARIJIT PASAYAT, J.

Appellant calls in question legality of the judgment rendered by a Division

Bench of the Bombay High Court (Nagpur Bench) dismissing the writ petition

filed by him holding that the order of compulsory retirement passed by the

authorities was in order.

The background facts leading to the passing of the order of compulsory

retirement are as under:-

Appellant was appointed to the permanent Commission as a Pilot Officer in

the Logistics Branch of Indian Air Force on 14.4.1973. Prior to his posting

at Nagpur vide order dated 17.11.1990 he was posted at Trivandrum since

28.10.1987. During tenure of his service in the Indian Air Force, the

appellant was posted at Leh in Laddakh, Nal in Rajasthan and few other

places.

Appellant was married to Mrs. Roopa Malhotra on 19.10.1973 as per Hindu

rites. The marriage was also registered with the Registrar of Marriage on

5.9.1974. On 21.3.1992, Mrs. Roopa Malhotra lodged a complaint with the

then Chief of the Air Staff against mis-deeds of the appellant and prayed

for maintenance as well as appropriate action against him. In the said

complaint Mrs. Roopa Malhotra (described for convenience as ‘complainant’)

stated that in the year 1990, she came to know that the appellant had

developed illicit relations with one Miss Anna Suja John when he was posted

at Trivandrum. She strongly objected to their illicit relations and on

account of that, the appellant started torturing her brutally. The

appellant was posted at Nagpur on 12.11.1990. The complainant also came to

Nagpur from Ambala and started residing with the appellant at Nagpur. Since

1991, appellant started asking complainant for mutual divorce. However, she

did not agree for the same. The appellant started beating her brutally and

torturing her mercilessly because of Miss Anna Suja John. It was further

stated in the complaint that in the year 1991 itself, Miss Anna Suja John

came to Nagpur and started staying with the appellant and complainant Mrs.

Roopa Malhotra at their residence at Nagpur. The complainant strongly

objected to this and requested the appellant not to have any relationship

with Miss Anna Suja John and told her to leave Nagpur. When complainant

could not bear the torture, she sought an interview with the then Air

Marshal I.G. Krishna, HQ Maintenance Command, Indian Air Force and narrated

her plight to him. Younger brother of the appellant came to Nagpur and told

the complainant that if she files a complaint against her husband, his

career would be spoiled. He also promised that Miss Anna Suja John would go

back to Kerala. However, it was noticed by the complainant that the

situation did not improve and appellant continued his illicit relations

with the other woman i.e. Miss Anna Suja John. When the complainant had

gone to Kanpur she saw Miss Anna Suja John with her child residing in the

parental house of the appellant at Kanpur. At that time, she realized that

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she had been cheated by the appellant as well as his brother. The appellant

abused the complainant in front of Miss Anna Suja John in filthy language.

When they were at Kanpur, appellant and Miss Anna Suja John used to sleep

in one room and complainant was asked to sleep in another room. At Kanpur,

the appellant told the complainant that he and Miss Anna Suja John are

married. While they were at Kanpur, appellant and Miss Anna Suja John were

behaving as husband and wife and going to hotels and various other places

together. The same thing continued at Nagpur. The complainant tried her

best to keep her nineteen years’ old marriage intact. However, it became

impossible for the complainant to survive in that situation. The appellant

stopped providing her basic a