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Supreme Court of India
AFTAB ALAM & RANJANA PRAKASH DESAI, JJ.
K. Srinivas Rao – Appellant
Versus
D.A. Deepa – Respondent
Civil Appeal No. 1794 of 2013 (Arising out of Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 4782 of 2007)
Decided On : 22-02-2013
Facts of the Case :
Respondent-wife herein in the instant case had filed a petition under Section 9 for restitution of conjugal rights before Family Court.The appellant-husband filed a counter-claim seeking dissolution of marriage on the ground of cruelty and desertion. Family Court while dismissing the petition for restitution of conjugal rights granted decree of divorce .Appeal thereagainst by respondent wife was allowed by High Court setting aside the decree of divorce granted in favour of appellant-husband.
B. Present appeal has been filed against said order of High Court.
Findings of the Court :
The first instance of mental cruelty was seen in the scurrilous, vulgar and defamatory statement made by respondent-wife in her complaint wherein she stated that mother of appellant-husband asked her to sleep with his father. By sending this complaint respondent-wife had caused mental cruelty to appellant-husband. Pursuant to this complaint, the police registered a case under Section 498-A of the IPC.The conduct of the respondent-wife in filing a complaint making unfounded, indecent and defamatory allegation against her mother-in-law, in filing revision seeking enhancement of the sentence awarded to the appellant-husband, in filing appeal questioning the acquittal of the appellant-husband and acquittal of his parents indicated that she made all attempts to ensure that he and his parents were put in jail and he was removed from his job. This conduct caused mental cruelty to appellant-husband. Apart from that appellant-husband and respondent-wife were living separately for more than ten years.Hence held that marriage having irretrievably broken down, Dissolution of marriage would relieve both sides of pain and anguish .Marriage between parties was dissolved by a decree of divorce. Appeal was disposed of.
Result : Appeal disposed of
Judgment :-
(SMT.) RANJANA PRAKASH DESAI, J.
1. Leave granted.
2. This appeal, by special leave, has been filed by the appellant-husband, being aggrieved by the judgment and order dated 8/11/2006 passed by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in Civil Miscellaneous Appeal No.797/03, setting aside the decree of divorce granted in his favour.
3. The appellant-husband is working as Assistant Registrar in the Andhra Pradesh High Court. The marriage between the appellant-husband and the respondent-wife was solemnized on 25/4/1999 as per Hindu rites and customs. Unfortunately, on the very next day disputes arose between the elders on both sides which resulted in their abusing each other and hurling chappals at each other. As a consequence, on 27/4/1999, the newly married couple got separated without consummation of the marriage and started living separately. On 4/10/1999, the respondent-wife lodged a criminal complaint against the appellant-husband before the Women Protection Cell alleging inter alia that the appellant-husband is harassing her for more dowry. This complaint is very crucial to this case. We shall advert to it more in detail a little later. Escalated acrimony led to complaints and counter complaints. The respondent-wife filed a petition under Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 for restitution of conjugal rights before the Family Court, Secunderabad. The appellant-husband filed a counter-claim seeking dissolution of marriage on the ground of cruelty and desertion under Section 13(1)(i-a) and (b) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
4. The Family Court while dismissing the petition for restitution of conjugal rights and granting decree of divorce inter alia held that the respondent-wife stayed in the appellant-husband’s house only for a day, she admitted that she did not have any conversation with anyone and hence any amount of oral evidence adduced by her will not support her plea that she was harassed and driven out of the house; that the story that the appellant-husband made a demand of dowry of Rs.10,00,000/- is false; that by filing false complaint against the appellant-husband and his family, alleging offence under Section 498-A of the IPC in the Metropolitan Magistrate Court, Hyderabad and by filing complaints against the appellant-husband in the High Court where he is working, the respondent-wife caused mental cruelty to the appellant-husband and that reunion was not possible. The Family Court directed the appellant-husband to repay Rs.80,000/- given by the respondent-wife’s father to him with interest at 8% per annum from the date of the marriage till payment.
5. By the impugned judgment the High Court allowed the appeal carried by the respondent-wife against the said judgment and set aside the decree of divorce granted in favour of the appellant-husband. The High Court inter alia observed that the finding of the Family Court that lodging a complaint with the police against the appellant-husband amounts to cruelty is perverse because it is not a ground for divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The High Court further held that the appellant-husband and the respondent-wife did not live together for a long time and, therefore, the question of their treating each other with cruelty does not arise. According to the High Court, the conclusion that the respondent-wife caused mental cruelty to the appellant-husband is based on presumptions and assumptions.
6. Mr. Jayanth Muth Raj, learned counsel for the appellant-husband assailed the conduct of the respondent-wife and submitted that it disentitles her from getting any relief from this Court. Counsel took us through the complaint lodged by the respondent-wife with the Superintendent of Police, Women Protection Cell, Hyderabad, making defamatory allegations against the mother of the appellant-husband and drew our attention to the various legal proceedings initiated by her against the appellant-husband and his family. Counsel submitted that she also lodged complaints with the
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