NIVEDYA Vs. ANOOP VIJAYAKUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal filed by the petitioner in I.A.2254/2019 in O.P.192/2019 on the file of the Family Court, Kottayam at Ettumanoor against the order allowing the above I.A and holding that the said Family Court has no territorial jurisdiction to entertain the above O.P. The 1st petitioner is a minor represented by next friend. The 2nd petitioner is the grandmother of the child. The 1st respondent is the father of the minor child. The respondents 2 & 3 are the in-laws of the deceased mother of the petitioner. The O.P has been preferred for return of gold ornaments of the mother of the petitioner. The respondents filed the above I.A. disputing the territorial jurisdiction of the Family Court at Ettumanoor. As per the impugned order, the Family court found that the cause of action did not arise within the jurisdiction of the Family Court, Ettumanoor and accordingly the above I.A was allowed holding that the Family Court, Ettumanoor has no territorial jurisdiction to entertain the O.P.

(2.) It was argued on the behalf of the appellant that a part of the cause of action arose within the jurisdiction of the Family Court, Ettumanoor and as such, the Family Court, Ettumanoor, has jurisdiction to entertain the O.P. In order to substantiate the said contention, the learned counsel for the appellants invited our attention to the pleadings in the Original Petition which was produced along with I.A.1/2024. In paragraph 11 of the Original Petition it is pleaded that on the date of the marriage, the deceased was given 110 sovereigns of gold ornaments. In addition to the same, 10 sovereigns of gold ornaments were gifted by the relatives. A gold chain weighing 3 sovereigns was given to the 1st respondent at the time of marriage.

(3.) It is true that in the O.P it is pleaded that the gold ornaments of the deceased were received by the respondents while she was at Qatar. However, a gold chain weighing 3 sovereigns is stated to have been given to the 1st respondent, as evident from paragraph 11 of the petition, at the time of marriage. The marriage was solemnized between the deceased and the 1st respondent on 31/5/2015 at Sree Bhagavathy Temple, Madappally, which is within the limits of the Family Court, Ettumanoor. The above gold chain given to the 1st respondent was scheduled as item No.42 in the list appended along with the petition.