VEENA JAMES Vs. KEWAL KRISHNA JAMES

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a reference under S. 17 of the Indian Divorce Act, 1869, for the confirmation of the decree nisi granted by the learned Addl. District Judge, Ferozepore, declaring the marriage of the petitioner with the respondent as null and void.

(2.) The petitioner, Mrs. Veena James had preferred the petition under Section 18 of the Indian Divorce Act, 1869, on the allegations that being a spinster of about 25 years of Age, she married the respondent Kewal Krishan James, (who had fraudulently represented himself to be a bachelor) at Ferozepore, according to the Christian rites. Thereafter, both of them lived together at Ferozepore and Dabwali. At the latter place it came to the knowledge of the petitioner that in fact the respondent-husband had already been married with one Bina Sharma and not only that he had three children from that wife. The respondent further started assaulting and mal-treating the petitioner and went to the length of making an attempt on her life in Jan., 1980, which culminated in security proceedings being taken by the police. Thereafter, the petitioner has been residing with here parents at Ferozepore and a child named Rohit James had been born out of the wed-lock on March 31, 1977.

(3.) Notice of the petition was duly served on the respondent-husband, but he refused to accept the same and necessarily ex parte proceedings were ordered against him.