HAPPY MAXWELL Vs. MAXWELL M.CHENNUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This original petition was preferred against the order of the Family Court, North Paravur, produced as Ext.P4. This order was passed in I.A No.7 of 2023 in O.P No.1 of 2023. The litigation has a checkered history starting from the year 2009. The respondent herein filed O.P No.1968 of 2009 before the Family Court, Ernakulam for divorce on the ground of adultery and cruelty, which was allowed. The case was disposed of along with the connected matters. The original petitioner herein namely, Happy Maxwell took the matter before this Court in Appeal. This Court set aside the order granting divorce holding that the petitioner herein was not given sufficient opportunity to cross examine the witnesses, who were summoned to give evidence in support of the case of the respondent. It appears that to prove the allegations of adultery, Dr.Radhamany K was examined as RW3 before the Family Court, Ernakulam along with other witnesses. On constitution of Family Court, Paravur, the entire case has been transferred to Family Court, Paravur from the Family Court, Ernakulam and the case has been renumbered as O.P No.1 of 2023.

(2.) The present interlocutory application was filed in the light of judgment of this Court in setting aside the earlier order of granting divorce. The operative portion of the judgment is reproduced herein:

(3.) The main challenge in this original petition is that, in view of the judgment in Justice K.S Puttaswamy (Retd.)and Another v. Union of India and Others [(2017) 10 SCC] the relationship between the doctor and the patient is protected and the order of the Family Court overreaches the fundamental rights of the petitioner in the light of Puttaswamy's Case (supra). We are not examining this matter now in the light of the privacy claimed by the petitioner for the simple reason that this Court, while disposing the appeal, permitted to recall the witnesses and also permitted to summon other witnesses to adduce further evidence. That intra party judgment is binding and the court below only followed the direction of this Court. In such circumstances, this original petition fails and accordingly, dismissed. We note that since the case is pending for more than a decade and the respondent appears to have married after the divorce granted by the Family Court initially, the Family Court shall bestow all efforts to dispose of the case at the earliest, at any rate, within a period of three months.