IMPORTANT POINT
Mere certificate of first marriage does not nullify first marriage. Nullity has to be declared.

JUDGMENT

Ranjan Gogoi, J.-Leave granted.

2. The appellant, who was married to the respondent in the year 2006, had filed a petition under Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the DV Act’) seeking certain reliefs including damages and maintenance. During the pendency of the aforesaid application the appellant filed an application for interim maintenance which was granted by the learned trial court on 13.02.2008 at the rate of Rs.2000/- per month. The order of the learned trial court was affirmed by the learned Sessions Judge on 09.07.2008. As against the aforesaid order, the respondent (husband) filed a Writ Petition before the High Court of Jharkhand.

3. While the Writ Petition was pending, the respondent sought a recall of the order dated 13.02.2008 on the ground that he could subsequently come to know that his marriage with the appellant was void on the ground that at the time of the said marriage the appellant was already married to one Rohit Kumar Mishra. In support, the respondent – husband had placed before the learned trial court the certificate of marriage dated 18.04.2003 between the appellant and the said Rohit Kumar Mishra issued by the competent authority under Section 13 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act of 1954’).

4. The learned trial court by order dated 7.8.2009 rejected the aforesaid application on the ground that notwithstanding the certificate issued under Section 13 of the Act of 1954, proof of existence of the conditions enumerated in Section 15 of the Act would still required to be adduced and only thereafter the certificate issued under Section 13 of the Act can be held to be valid.

5. The aforesaid order dated 07.08.2009 was challenged by the respondent-husband in a revision application before the High Court which was heard alongwith the writ petition filed earlier. Both the cases were disposed of by the impugned common order dated 09.04.2010 holding that the marriage certificate dated 18.04.2003 issued under Section 13 of the Act of 1954 was conclusive proof of the first marriage of the appellant with one Rohit Kumar Mishra which had the effect of rendering the marriage between the appellant and the respondent null and void. Accordingly, it was held that as the appellant was not the legally wedded wife of the respondent she was not entitled to maintenance granted by the learned courts below. It is against the aforesaid order of the High Court that the present appeals have been filed by the appellant – wife.

6. We have heard Shri Gaurav Agarwal, learned counsel for the appellant and Shri Mahesh Tiwari, learned counsel for the respondent.

7. Learned counsel for the appellant has strenuously urged that the allegation of the earlier marriage between the appellant and Rohit Kumar Mishra had been denied by the appellant at all stages and the said fact is not substantiated only by the Marriage Certificate dated 18.04.2003. Even assuming the marriage between the appellant and the respondent to be void, the parties having lived together, a relationship in the nature of marriage had existed which will entitle the appellant to claim and receive maintenance under the DV Act, 2005. Placing the legislative history leading to the aforesaid enactment, it is urged that in the Bill placed before the Parliament i.e. Protection from Domestic Violence Bill, 2002 an “aggrieved person” and “relative” was, initially, defined in the following terms :

“Section 2……… (a) “aggrieved person” means any woman who is or has been relative of the respondent and who alleges to have been subjected to act of domestic violence by the respondent; (b)… ( c )… (d)…. (e)…. (f)… (g)… (h)…. (i)”relative” includes any person related by blood, marriage or adoption and living with the respondent.”

Thereafter, the different clauses of the Bill were considered by a Parliamentary Standing Committee and recommendations were made that having regard to