MINOTI MONDAL Vs. STATE OF BIHAR AND ANOTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Having failed before the Principal Judge of Family Court in her bid to secure an order for grant of maintenance to her in accordance with the provisions of Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the petitioner has come to this Court by filing this application under sub-section (4) of Section 19 of the Family Courts Act, 1984 for the same relief.

(2.) The petitioner had presented before the Principal Judge of the Family Court at Dhanbad an application under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure seeking maintenance from opposite party No. 2 for self as well as a minor child on the ground that they were neglected by the said opposite party. Her application was registered as M. P. Case No. 314 of 1995. The case of the petitioner, as made out in the said application, is that she was married to opposite party No. 2 Patit Pawan Mondal on the 12th of February, 1981 at the temple of Goddess Kalyaneswari and in consequence of such marriage she had given birth to a male child on the 27th of September, 1983. However, soon after the birth of the child, opposite party No. 2 started subjecting her with cruelty; and ultimately drove them out of the Matrimonial home. According to her, opposite party No. 2 is a health worker posted at Health Sub-Centre, Gopalpur under Primary Health Centre of Nirsa in the district of Dhanbad and failed to maintain her and the minor child for the last five years driving them to acute financial constraints. In the meantime, opposite party No. 2 had come in contact with another lady Smt. Shefali Bhowmik, a co-worker. Consequently, she had claimed a sum of Rs. 1000/- per month by way of maintenance for herself and the minor child born through the wed-lock.

(3.) Notice of the application was served on opposite party No. 2 who appeared and filed his show cause on 24.4.96. A supplementary show cause was also filed by him later on. In his show cause, opposite party No. 2 denied the allegations of the petitioner asserting that he had never married her nor any child was born out of the marriage as alleged by the petitioner. According to him, the real name of the petitioner is Monika Rani Pal who is daughter of one Radha Nath Pal of village Bhatudih in the district of Santhal Parganas (Dumka). She was married to one Sheonandan Pandit of village Mohlidih of the same district. As a matter of fact, she had filed a similar application before the Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate of Dumka in 1981 which was registered as Crime Misc. No. 10 of 1981. His further case is that he was married with one Smt. Champa Devi in June, 1977 and had nothing to do with the present petitioner. According to him, the petitioner is a woman of bad character and had been filing applications against him in the Desertion Cell of Dhanbad seeking maintenance and after enquiry her allegations were found to be untrue.