RAJKUMAR BUTTAN Vs. KRANTIDEVI RAJKUMAR BUTTAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Family Court, Bombay, has granted a sum of Rs. 500/- per month as maintenance from the date of the filing of the petition to the Respondent-Original Applicant, and aggrieved thereby original Respondent No. 1 has filed this Appeal.

(2.) THE principal controversy before the Family Court was whether the Petitioner was legally married to Respondent No. 1. The case of the Petitioner is that the marriage took place about 12 years before in village Diwai in U. P. Respondent No. 1 Rajkumar is serving as a cook in Holiday inn, in Bombay. Respondent No. 2 Maya Kanchi is his second wife. The Petitioner was living in the family house of the Respondent at Balarampur and she was occasionally visiting Bombay where her parents also reside. The Respondent also used to come to the village 4-5 times in a year and used to co-habit with the Petitioner. The Respondent started behaving rudely with her for no reason. Some time prior to 1988 she was mercilessly assaulted and driven out from the matrimonial home at Balarampur, as a result she had no other choice but to come to Bombay to stay with her parents. A notice was served upon the Respondent after receipt of which the petitioner was taken back to the village in the beginning of May T 989. The Respondent came to the village again, assaulted her and again drove her out of the house. It is, thereafter, that the petitioner came to know that the Respondent No. 1 had married another woman-Respondent No. 2.

(3.) THE defence of the Respondent is that no marriage took place. The Petitioner was a domestic servant in his father's house in the village. She was staying in the house in that capacity.