KEHR SINGH BASRA Vs. JASBIR KAUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE brief facts leading to this petition under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (hereinafter referred to as code) read with Article 227 of the Constitution of India are that present respondent Jasbir Kaur had filed an application under section 125 of the Code against her husband Kehar Singh, who at the time of filing of the application was residing in Canada. Notices were sent to Kehar Singh by registered post but the registered covers or the acknowledgments were not received back. The learned Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Jullundur who was trying the application, ordered that the service of Kehar Singh be affected by publication of notice in a newspaper (i.e. Nawan Zamana). When Kehar Singh did not appear on the date of hearing inspite of publication of notice in the newspaper, he was proceeded against ex-parte. After recoding the evidence, the learned Magistrate allowed Rs. 500/- P.M. as maintenance to Jasbir Kaur vide his order dated 9.5.1980.

(2.) ONE Ram Singh alleging himself to be attorney of Kehar Singh, Filed an application on 1.4.1982 for setting aside the above ex-parte order. In the application he alleged that he came to know about the said ex-parte order on 26.3.1982 and Kehar Singh had no knowledge about it upto that time.

(3.) IT was not disputed before me by the learned counsel for the petitioner that proceedings under section 125 of the Code are criminal in nature and are governed by the provisions of the Code. The section alongwith connected ones has been incorporated in the self-contained chapter 9 of the code. The detailed provisions contained in section 125 provide both the right and the pre-requisite for an order of the maintenance. Section 126 lays down the procedure to be followed. It becomes necessary to reproduce here the relevant provision of section 126.