VIJAYALAXMI Vs. MANJIT SINGH BHALLA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is the wife's petition. She seeks revision of the order dated 30/11/1985 of the Additional District Judge, Delhi, dismissing her application filed under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (for short 'the Act'). This application the wife filed in a proceeding for dissolution of marriage filed by her husband (respondent now before me) on the ground of cruelty.

(2.) . Both parties were married in accordance with Hindu rites at New Delhi on 10/10/1982. The wife is a citizen of the United States of America (U.S.A.) though born in India. The husband at the relevant time was and even now is a lecturer in a college affiliated to Delhi University. After about one and a half month's stay in India the wife left for the U.S.A. She gave birth to a child, a daughter, on 27/8/1983 there. The petition for dissolution of marriage was filed by the husband in the court of the District Judge, Delhi, on 15/5/1984. For the purpose of this petition, I need not go into various imputations made by the husband against his wife as till now she has not filed her written statement. She, however, filed an application under Section 24 of the Act on 14/8/1984 but due to certain technical defect withdrew the same and filed another such application on 1/10/1984. At the time of her marriage the wife was working as a Data Coder Operator and was earning US $215 per week. She, however, said that on account of her stay in India she had to lose that job. She said she had spent all her savings on her visits to India and also on the air ticket purchased by her for her husband who had also visited the U.S.A. She said she was unemployed and was not having any income and that she was only getting US $ 250 per month from the Government of U.S.A. as social security/unemployed allowae which amount was payable only if she stayed in U.S.A. She said the respondent was drawing a salary of Rs. 3,000.00 per month, was living with his parents in their house and had no liability. She, therefore, claimed Rs. 1,500.00 per month as maintenance charges for her and for the child. She further claimed Rs. 3,500.00 towards litigation expenses and another sum of Rs. 14,000.00 to enable her to visit India for the proper defence of the case filed by her husband.

(3.) . The husband denied his liability to pay and said that the wife was possessed of sufficient funds. He said at the time of marriage, the wife had informed the authorities that she was having annual income of US $11,856 and was having a Savings Bank Account in U.S.A. and was also possessed of joint accounts of about US $ 70,000 in the form of personal property with a life insurance of nearly US $ 20,000. The husband said this information was contained in the affidavit of wife dated 18/10/1982. He also said that wife was having a plot of land measuring 100 sq. yds. in Pitampura in the Union Territory of Delhi. He also said that the amount of US $ 250 per month, which the wife was getting from the Government of U.S.A., was sufficient for her needs. He also said there was no need for the wife to come to India to contest the petition for dissolution of marriage filed by him and that she could communicate instructions to her counsel while in U.S.A. The husband brought on record his salary certificate which is dated 13/3/85. During the course of arguments before me, it was contended that after the last Pay Commission there had been upward revision in the salary of the husband. I asked the husband to file his latest salary certificate, but this was not done.