PUSHPA Vs. MUKESH KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant-wife Smt. Pushpa having remained unsuccessful in getting her marriage to Mukesh Kumar-husband dissolved before the learned Additional District Judge, Narnaul has now filed the present appeal before this Court.

(2.) For the sake of convenience, the parties in the present appeal shall be referred to as "wife" and "husband" respectively.

(3.) The case put up by the wife in her petition filed under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act for the dissolution of her marriage with Mukesh Kumar-husband is that they were married on 16/11/1983 at Narnaul. On the aforesaid date her elder sister Rajbala was also married with Satbir, the elder brother of the husband. The Marriage between Rajbala and Satbir was consummated immediately whereas the marriage between the present appellant i.e. Pushpa and the respondent-husband Mukesh Kumar had consummated after gauna ceremony which took place on 19/01/1995. After gauna ceremony, when she went to live with her husband at her matrimonial home, she was kept well for 3/4 days and thereafter, her in-laws started raising demand of money. According to the wife, she was asked to bring Rs. 50,000.00 from her parents. It has also been stated that she was also beaten up by her in-laws. On 12/05/1998, her mother accompanied by her father, brother and other persons, went to her in-laws house and asked them not to harass her but still they reiterated their demand of more money. Her father refused to oblige the illegitimate demand of her in-laws. She was turned out of her matrimonial home and she came back to her parents home. She has stated that she was pregnant at that time. She gave birth to a male child on 3/09/1998 at Narnaul. A letter was written to her in-laws informing them about the birth of the child but nobody, including her husband, ever came to visit her to see the child. On 22/05/1999, the husband accompanied by his father and elder brother visited her parents to enquire about the money demanded by them but her father refused to give money. The husband and his elder brother picked up a quarrel with her father and brother and a case was got registered. With these averments, a decree of divorce has been claimed by the wife on the ground of cruelty.