DURGABAI Vs. MURLIDHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by the defendant-wife is against the judgment and decree dated 31-10-1990 passed by District Judge, Chhindwara, in Civil Suit No. 18-A/78.

(2.) Respondent-plaintiff had submitted an application against the appellant-wife under Sec. 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (herein-after referred to as 'the Act') for divorce. There is no dispute on the fact that the parties were, married according to Hindu customs on 19-5-1973. It also is not in dispute that in Jan. 1978 a son was born to the appellant wife. According to the appellant, this child was born to the 18-1-1978, while according to the respondent the child was born on 19-1-1979. According to the appellant-wife this son was born from the respondent-husband, while the latter has alleged that after 11-10-1976 when his wife had been taken away by her father, they have neither lived together nor was there any sexual relation between them. The allegation of appellant wife was that after 11-10-1976, the respondent-husband had been coming to her father's house at Narsimhapur and used to live there. According to her it was then that she had - conceived a child from the respondent. On coming to know of this pregnancy, the respondent - husband stopped coining to her from about April 1977. When she was carrying pregnancy of about four to five months, she had gone to assist her sister during delivery to Ubhegaon (Chhindwara), where she had ultimately delivered the son.

(3.) The Court below found that the wife had lived with the husband only till 11-10-1966 (? 1976) and thereafter the husband had no access to the wife. The appellant-wife's plea that the respondent-husband had often been coming to her father's house and staying there was negatived. Consequent to the different findings, he found that the child was born to the appellant-wife as a result of voluntary sexual intercourse with another person other than the respondent-husband. Therefore, respondent-husband's application for divorce was allowed and accordingly a decree was passed.