CHANDER KISHORE Vs. NANK CHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) There are four applications for hearing before this Court, two of which are concerned with the marriage expenses of defendant No. 4 and two of which are concerned with the management of the allegedly Joint Hindu Family property, which is the subject-matter of the suit. This order will dispose of the applications, which are concerned with the marriage expenses of defendant No. 4, and the other two applications will be heard on some subsequent date. I, therefore, proceed to decide I.A. Nos. 1207 and 2831 of 1974. The former application was moved by the plaintiffs and prayed for an order directing defendant No. 1 to set aside a sum of Rs. 75,000.00 or such other amount as the Court may direct to meet the marriage expenses of defendant No. 4 I.A. No. 2831/74 has been moved by defendant No. 4 to meet her marriage expenses. According to this application, the property of the Joint Hindu Family is worth more than Rs. 5,00,000.00 and is earning a handsome income of not less than Rs. 5,000.00 per month, and hence, defendant No. 1 will be in a position to meet the expenses of the proposed marriage of the applicant, defendant No. 4. This application also prays that a sum of Rs. 75,000.00 or such other amount as this Court may direct may be set aside for meeting the marriage expenses of defendant No. 4. Both the applications state that the sum should be placed at the disposal of the plaintiffs and defendants 2 to 4 to meet those expenses.

(2.) Both these applications have been heard by me on a number of occasions both in Court as well as in camera for the purpose of bringing about some convenient arrangement by which the marriage of defendant No. 4 can be performed in a satisfactory manner. Unfortunately, it has not been possible to reach an agreement in spite of defendant No. 1 being willing to perform the marriage. I may say at the outset, that Shri Nanak Chand, defendant No. 1 is the father and plaintiffs 1 to 3 are his sons, whereas defendants 2 to 4 are his daughters. There are unfortunate circumstances in the case which have proved to be a stumbling block in the performance of the marriage as originally thought possible by me and directed on 13th January, 1975. I proceed to deal with the cricumstances.

(3.) Shri Nanak Chand is the adopted son of the late Shri Banarsi Dass. He has six children from his first marriage. He later married Shrimati Bimla Devi, defendant No. 4, but the factum and validity of the marriage is contested by the plantiffs. He has two children through the second marriage. One of the issues framed in the suit, reads: "Is Shrimati Bimla Devi the wife of defendant No. 1 and are the two sons from her, his sons". The fact of the matter is that according to the plaintiffs, the 5th defendant is not the legally wedded wife of their father, Shri Nanak Chand. On the other hand, Sliri Nanak Chand is willing to perform the marriage, but he insists on the presence of Shrimati Bimla Devi at the time the marriage is to be performed, and is not willing to perform the marriage in hoiabsence. On the other hand, defendant No. 4 states that she would rather not be married if defendant No. 5 performs the marriage or is to be present at the marriage. A similar stand has been taken by the plaintiffs. It has, therefore, become impossible to get the marriage performed through defendant No. 1. In view of the extraordinary strained relations between the plaintiffs and defendants 2 to 4 on the one hand and defendant on the other, it would be, I think, impossible to get the marriage performed by letting Shri Nanak Chand perform the marriage. Such a step certainly lead to serious trouble between the parties and possibly defendant No. 4 would not agree to the marriage being performed, and probably there would be violence or other incidents at the time which would render the oilier inoperative and impossible to perform. I have. therefore, to find some other solution for the purpose of seeing whether an order cannot he passed as prayed for by the applicants.