GEETA ANAND Vs. TANYA ARJUN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A learned Single Judge of the Court noticing a situation of conflict of opinion with regards to the jurisdiction of the Family Courts vis-a-vis Civil Courts as to certain kinds of matrimonial disputes propounded in Manita Khurana v. Indira Khurana and Meena Kapoor v. Ayushi Rawal on the one hand and Avneet Kaur v. Sadhu Singh 2022:DHC:2453 on the other hand, has referred the following questions for our consideration: -

(2.) The issue arises in the context of interpretation, scope and ambit of Explanation (d) of Sec. 7(1) of the Family Courts Act, 19841 (hereinafter referred to as 'subject provision') wherein a suit, proceeding for an order or injunction "arising out of a marital relationship' is to fall under the ambit of the jurisdiction of Family Courts. The primary contestation centres around the question whether the claim of a third party against or involving a party to a marriage, even if he/she is a parent of one of the spouses, should be exclusively tried before the Family Court, thereby ousting the jurisdiction of Civil Court. It flows from the conflicting observations of the Court in the above mentioned cases wherein while the learned Single Judge in Avneet Kaur (supra) held that a suit seeking eviction would be maintainable before Family Courts as marriage is the foundation of this dispute, the learned Single Judges in the earlier decisions in Manita Khurana (supra) and Meena Kapoor (supra) have taken a different view holding that such suits would be outside the purview of the Family Courts. The aforesaid issue forms the core of Question (a).

(3.) Question (b) flows from the learned judge concluding that there is an apparent conflict between the above-mentioned decisions regarding the jurisdiction of Family Court depending upon who the litigating parties are, since in Avneet Kaur it was opined that upon the reading of subject provision it cannot be inferred that jurisdiction of Family Courts is limited to litigation between husband and wife. It has been observed that the above is in direct conflict with the judgments in Manita Khurana and Meena Kapoor; and that the same have not referred while giving the decision in Avneet Kaur. The Courts in Manita Khurana and Meena Kapoor had held that based on a mother- in-law's exclusive title to property, a suit seeking injunction or eviction filed by her against the daughter-in-law cannot be said to be a suit "in circumstances arising out of a marital relationship', thus it cannot be exclusively tried by a Family Court.