OM PARKASH Vs. PARO

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a husband's appeal against the judgment and decree dated 5.4.1990 passed by the learned Additional District Judge, Sirsa whereby the petition of the appellant under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') for the grant of divorce has been dismissed.

(2.) THE facts leading to the case are that the marriage between the parties was solemnised on 22.6.1986 according to Hindu rites and ceremonies at Village Simla, Tehsil Sardar Shahar, District Churu, Rajasthan. The father of the wife, Dulla Ram was a 'Siri' (agricultural worker paid through a share in the produce) with Kesra Ram s/o Mamu, resident of Village Jamal, Tehsil and District Sirsa. The financial condition of Dulla Ram was not good. He had two daughters of marriageable age. The appellant was also a poor man having no ways and means of the livelihood except casual labour. There was no easy chance of the appellant to be able to get married. It was in these circumstances that Dulla Ram agreed to marry his daughters to the appellant and his brother Mehar Chand if they both i.e. appellant and his brother paid Rs. 10,000/- to him. The offer was accepted by the appellant and his brother. They gave Rs. 10,000/- to Dulla Ram and the marriage between the parties was solemnised. It is further stated, that gold ornaments weighing 4 tolas and silver 'pajeb' weighing 8 tolas and clothes etc. were also given to the respondent. However, the father of the respondent was a greedy person and he did not send the respondent to the house of the appellant up to after one year of solemnization of the marriage and during this period he embezzled and misappropriated the jewellery given by the appellant, at the time of marriage. On condoning the misappropriation, the father of the respondent sent her to the home of the appellant. Thereafter the appellant and the respondent lived together as husband and wife and cohabited as such but they had no issue from the wedlock between them. The allegations of the appellant are that the father of the respondent had been demanding another amount of consideration in case he wanted to lead married life with the respondent. The respondent had been using all the tactics for this purpose. The appellant was unable to fulfil the demand as his economic condition was not good. The respondent had even been misbehaving and insulting the appellant and his parents on petty matters. Respondent and her sister left the house of the appellant and his brother after quarrelling with him and his brother and went to the house of aforesaid Kesra Ram sometime in the first week of May, 1989. They also moved false applications through Kesra Ram at Police Post, Jamal and got the petitioner and his brother beaten up and insulted by the police. In this manner the respondent is stated to have crossed heights of cruelty. The petitioner and his brother got themselves medico-legally examined on 9.5.1989 at General Hospital, Sirsa. The appellant in no way condoned the acts of the respondent towards him and his family members. He accordingly prayed for dissolution of the marriage between the parties by a decree of divorce.

(3.) THE appellant filed his replication to the written statement of the respondent and reiterated his averments made in the petition and denied those made in the written statement.