Dissolution Of Hindu Marriage By Unilateral Declaration Executed On Stamp Paper Not Recognized By Law: Allahabad HC
The Allahabad High Court held that a unilateral declaration executed on a stamp paper is not a mode of dissolution of a Hindu marriage recognized under the law.
The wife had filed for maintenance under Section 125 CrPC. The husband had argued that the parties had taken divorce by mutual consent in accordance with the customs of the locality fourteen years before the maintenance claim and the said fact was concealed in the application.
Since the parties had executed the alleged divorce agreement by mutual consent on a stamp paper, the High Court held that a “marriage between two Hindus can be dissolved only by modes recognized by the Hindu Marriage Act” and not by unilateral declaration executed on a stamp paper.
A Single Bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi observed, “When the marriage between the revisionist and the opposite party has not been dissolved by any manner known to law, it continues to subsist and the respondent having married another lady and having procreated three children from her, has given rise to a reasonable cause to the opposite party to live separate from the revisionist.”
Advocate Sadhu Sharan Chaubey represented the revisionist.
Therefore, the Court held that the “marriage between the parties was not dissolved in accordance with law” and the wife was still legally wedded to the husband.
The family court in its judgment had concluded that since the husband had married another lady without dissolving his first marriage with the wife, it gave rise to a sufficient cause for the wife to live separate from the husband. Therefore, the wife was granted maintenance by the family court.
To this effect, the High Court held that there was “no error or illegality” in the findings of the family court.
The Court remarked that marriage continues to subsist if it has not been dissolved by any manner known to law.
“Even otherwise the application under Section 125 Cr.P.C. can be filed by the applicant even after dissolution of her marriage,” the Court stated.
Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the criminal revision.
Cause Title: Vinod Kumar @ Sant Ram v. Smt. Shiv Rani (Neutral Citation: 2024:AHC-LKO:20076)
Appearance:
Revisionist: Advocates Sadhu Sharan Chaubey, Abha Srivastava and Manish Barnwal
Click here to read/download the Order
