SUKHENDU BIKASH CHATTERJEE Vs. ANJALI CHATTERJEE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present appeal is at the instance of the husband. and is directed against a judgment and decree of dismissal passed by the learned Assistant District Judge, 2nd Court, Howrah, on 15th April, 1988, in Matrimonial Suit No. 16 of 1985.

(2.) The husband brought the suit for divorce, in the alternative, for judicial separation under Special Marriage Act, on the grounds of wife's cruelty and desertion. The marriage between the parties took place cat 20th March, 1978, and, out of the -wed lock, a female child was born on 11th June, 1979. There was previously another suit by the husband, which had been dismissed for default on 27th June, 1981 and the present suit was filed on 6th of February, 1985. The desertion allegedly started with effect from 12th of June, 1981. The alleged acts of cruelty consist of mental pressure by wife for extraction of money from the husband and physical and mental pressure by refusing to give proper food to the husband, refusing to perform marital obligations and causing assaults of the husband by the wife's brother; in addition there were allegations of undesirable mixing of the wife with outsiders and hurling abuses with filthy language even within office precincts.

(3.) The defence, on behalf of the wife, was however, a total denial of all the allegations of the husband with further assertion that the refusal by the husband's elderly step-brother to accommodate him in his house compel as the couple, since after the marriage, to live in different rented premises. The desertion according to wife, also was made by tire husband on the date as alleged in the plaint and the previous suit being allowed to be dismissed for default was motivated to enable the husband to avoid marital liabilities.