DHARAM PAL Vs. PUSHPA DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The husband is the appellant before this Court. He has challenged the judgment dated July 23, 2001, passed by the learned single Judge whereby on an appeal filed by the respondent-wife, the decree of divorce granted by the learned trial Judge has been set aside.

(2.) The marriage between the parties was solemnised on September 20, 1977. A divorce petition was filed by the husband in May, 1989 on the allegations that the wife had left the matrimonial home on December 12, 1984 and had started living separately without any justifiable cause. It was also claimed by the husband that during her stay also, she used to quarrel with the parents of the husband and used to threaten the husband with dire consequences. Consequently, divorce was sought by the husband on account of cruelty and desertion.

(3.) The wife contested the divorce petition. She denied all the allegations levelled against her. It was pleaded by her that the husband and wife had lived in village Randhawa, home village of the husband, upto 1985. In those days, the atmosphere in the State of Punjab was not good and she had to travel to Sirhind every day where she was posted as a Teacher. There was a house of her parents at Sirhind and because of the aforesaid problem, she shifted to that house along with her mother-in-law. However, the wife further pleaded that the divorce petition had been filed by the husband at the instance of one Bhupinder Kaur, who is a teacher and posted in the same School where the husband was posted. It was further pleaded by the wife that the husband had a soft corner for aforesaid Bhupinder Kaur and that the husband of aforesaid Bhupinder Kaur was posted and residing at Gwalior. The wife further claimed that Panchayats of village Aluna and other neighbouring villages had also represented to the higher authorities of the Education Department to transfer either of the two (husband or Bhupinder Kaur) from the School. It was also alleged that the wife tried to persuade the husband to get his transfer to Sirhind so that they could live together but the husband became annoyed and parted the company of the respondent. He also took away his mother from Sirhind. The wife further maintained that she had tried many times to live with the husband but the husband did not agree for that.