T RAMADEVI Vs. T V SUBRAHMANYAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This application is filed by a Hindu wife under S. 24 of the Civil P. C. to transfer her husbands divorce petition under S. 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act from the Court of the Additional District Judge, Cuddapah to the Court of the District Judge, Kurnool. The petitioner-wife and the respondent-husband are both well educated. The petitioner is a Graduate in Medicine and the husband is a Ph. D., of I. I. T. Madras. They were married in the year 1978 at Cuddapah and have a male child which is now nearly one year old. Even by the time of the marriage, the petitioner-wife is in Government service working at Kurnool and subsequent to the marriage the husband-respondent obtained employment in Brazil and is now staying in that country working there in a well-paid job. All seemed to be well. But fate seems to be cruel. While still working and staying at Brazil, the husband filed O.P. 54 of 1980 in the Cuddapah District Court seeking divorce from his wife. The wife seeks in the present application transfer of that O. P. 54/80 to the District Curt, Kurnool. I omit to mention the grounds of that divorce application as they are not relevant for the purpose of this application.

(2.) Now the wife alleges in this transfer application that she cannot have a fair trial at Cuddapah where her husbands brother, a practising Advocate and according to her, mainly responsible for the misunderstandings between the wife and the husband, lives and wields lot of local influence. She also alleges that she is afraid of danger to her life at Cuddapah. She also says that she would not be in a position to attend effectively to the trial at Cuddapah as it involves giving up, though temporarily, her duty to look after her one year old baby at Kurnool. She also argues that by transferring the husbands application for divorce, for trial to Kurnool the husband would not be put to any inconvenience or prejudice.

(3.) These grounds are countered by the husband. It is denied that the husbands brother could have anything to do with the conduct of a fair trial at Cuddapah. It is said for the husband that the obligation of the wife to nurse the one year old child would not, in any way, seriously be interfered with by the trial taking place at Cuddapah. It is denied that there is any danger to the petitioners life at Cuddapah. Above all it is argued that this transfer application is not maintainable as S. 24 of the Civil P. C., under which this application for transfer is filed, has no application to a divorce application filed under S. 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.