GOPAL KRISHAN Vs. NEELAM SANDHIR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Notice of this appeal was issued to the respondent which was refused by her. Then actual date notice was issued to her. Still, appearance has not been put in. Accordingly, I proceed to decide this appeal ex parte.

(2.) Gopal Krishan and Neelam, who are Brahmins by caste, got married on 6-12-1976. At the time of marriage, Neelam was employed as a teacher ; whereas the husband was unemployed and was assisting his father in agriculture. Both the parties belong to Amloh, which is a Tehsil headquarter in district Patiala. According to the husband, the wife left matrimonial home on 30-6-1977 whereas according to the wife, she was turned out of the house on that date in a pregnant condition. On 19-12-1977, she gave birth to a son at her father's place. On 30-8-1978, the husband filed the present petition for divorce under section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act on the ground of mental cruelty caused to him by the letter of the wife dated 21-6-1978 as also due to the fact that it was agreed on before the marriage that the wife will give up service and will work a house-wife but she failed to resign and continued in service after the marriage. The application was contested by the wife and she denied all the allegations and reiterated that the husband and other members of his family maltreated her. She even denied to have written letter dated 21.6.1978. On the contest of the parties, the following issues were framed :-

(3.) After evidence was led, the learned Additional District Judge, Patiala, Contended that the husband failed to prove that he had been treated with cruelty by the respondent. It was also found that there appeared to be no merit in the defence set up by the wife that she was ill-treated or that any demand for more dowery was made. The story of taking the Panchayat to the husband's house was also not found to be true. Accordingly, the learned Additional District Judge dismissed the divorce petition on 22-12-1980. This is husband's appeal.