RITU GUPTA Vs. AMIT KUMAR GARG

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a petition under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure (for short 'the Code') for transfer of a petition under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (for short 'the Act') filed by the respondent-husband against the petitioner titled as "Amit Kumar v. Ritu Gupta" which is pending in the Court of Shri Zora Singh, Additional District Judge, Barnala, to any other Court of competent jurisdiction at Chandigarh.

(2.) AS per averments made in the petition, the petitioner is working as Lecturer in the Department of Chemical Engineering, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala and has been living in the accommodation provided by the said institute at Patiala. Father of the petitioner is working in the Punjab University, Chandigarh. A female child was born to the petitioner from the loins of the respondent on 5.7.2002. The petitioner further alleges that the respondent and his family members are dowry seekers and being not satisfied by the dowry articles given by the petitioner's parents at the time of marriage, the respondent has been treating her with cruelty. The respondent has also been adopting lackadaisical attitude towards the petitioner and her daughter as he has never bothered to see her daughter even once since her birth. The petitioner filed a petition under Section 125 Cr.P.C. in a Court at Chandigarh claiming maintenance for the minor child which is pending in the Court of Ms. Sangeeta Rai, Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Chandigarh. It is further alleged that as a counterblast to the above petition, the respondent has filed a divorce petition against the petitioner at Barnala. The petitioner seeks transfer of the said divorce petition to Chandigarh on the grounds that the respondent had earlier filed a petition before the Permanent Lok Adalat at Chandigarh and now the respondent has filed divorce petition at Barnala with a view to harass the petitioner. The petitioner further alleges that she has to travel to Barnala to attend the proceedings with her infant female child on every date of hearing. The petitioner further alleges that she apprehends danger to her life at the hands or at the instance of the respondent because of their strained relations.

(3.) I have heard learned counsel for the parties and have perused the record. The sole question that needs consideration by this Court is, whether there are sufficient grounds for transfer of the divorce case between the parties pending in the Court Barnala to Chandigarh. This Court in Deepika's case (supra) has held as under :-