BINDU Vs. JAYAN, S/O.VELAYUDHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is preferred against the judgment dated 29.5.2008 of the Family Court, Palakkad dismissing O.P.No.1352 of 2006 filed by the appellant/wife. The original petition was filed alleging that 50 sovereigns of gold jewellery and Rs.50,000/- given to the petitioner/appellant at the time of marriage had been entrusted to the respondent husband and his mother and the same had not been returned to the petitioner. It was further alleged that the 1st respondent had appropriated the said gold and cash for his own purpose and was therefore liable to return the same. Return of an aggregate sum of Rs.4,26,000/- was therefore sought.

(2.) A counter affidavit was filed in the original petition by the respondents, contending that the petitioner had only about 15 sovereigns of gold ornaments at the time of marriage and that she had taken all those ornaments back with her when she left the matrimonial home in January, 2006.

(3.) PW1 and PW2 were examined on the side of the petitioner/wife and Exhibits A1 to A3 and A4 and A5 series were marked. On the respondents side, RW1 was examined but no documentary evidence was produced. Considering the bills and estimates produced by the petitioner as Exhibits A4 to A4(j), the Family Court came to the conclusion that the "estimate slips" could not be relied upon to hold that the petitioner had 50 sovereigns of gold ornaments at the time of marriage. Though PW2, an independent witness, was examined to prove the entrustment of the cash at the time of marriage, relying on a discrepancy in his evidence and that of PW1 as to the time of entrustment, the testimony was discarded. Further, it was found that the petitioner had failed to prove entrustment of the ornaments and cash and the original petition was, therefore, dismissed.