Allahabad High Court
Deepika Chopara vs State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. ... on 26 March, 2021
Bench: Attau Rahman Masoodi, Alok Mathur
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD, LUCKNOW BENCH
?Court No. - 9
Case :- MISC. BENCH No. - 35600 of 2019
Petitioner :- Deepika Chopara
Respondent :- State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. Home Lko. & Ors.
Counsel for Petitioner :- Anurag Shukla,Maneesh Pandey,Manish Misra,Sandeep Kumar Shukla
Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.
Hon'ble Attau Rahman Masoodi,J.
Hon'ble Alok Mathur,J.
Shri Anuj Prakash Srivastava, Internal Legal, Lucknow Hub, P.N.B. Housing Finance Private Ltd. (in short, 'Finance Company'), pursuant to the order passed by this Court on 25.03.2021 is present in person.
The officer, present, has stated that the Finance Company has considered the petitioner's request for withdrawal of personal guarantee in the given situation of separation from her husband, viz.- Nikhil Kumar Garg. It is further assured that the Finance Company shall issue a formal letter absolving the petitioner from her personal guarantee against the loan obtained by Kailash Saroj Charitable Trust to the tune of rupees fifteen crores as soon as the decree passed by the competent court dissolving the marriage between the petitioner and her husband is presented.
The parties present in person have also arrived at a settlement. The original copy of the settlement duly signed by both of them, has been placed on record. The settlement arrived at between the parties on 26.03.2021 takes into account in detail the pending cases including the case of the guardianship of the minor child. The opposite party No. 5 has voluntarily forgone his visitation rights to the minor child till she attains the age of majority under the exclusive guardianship of her natural mother. All the articles as claimed by the petitioner, of which a list was handed over, have been agreed to be returned to the petitioner by the opposite party No. 5 in presence of their counsels.
Looking to the terms of settlement, this Court, deems it proper to issue the following directions:
(a) The petitioner shall make an application for withdrawal of Writ Petition No. 19839 (MB) of 2020, Deepika Chopra Vs. The State of U.P. and others within two weeks from today.
(b) The petitioner shall make an application for withdrawal of Case No. 448 of 2019 [Deepika Chopra Vs. Nikhil Kumar Garg] instituted under Section 12 of the Protection of Women From Domestic Violence Act, 2005 before the court concerned withing two weeks from today. The court concerned on the said application filed by the petitioner shall pass necessary orders expeditiously and not later than a period of two months from the date of filing of the withdrawal application.
(c) The opposite party No. 5 (Nikhil Kumar Garg) shall move a withdrawal application in Case No. 209 of 2019 [Nikhil Garg Vs. Anaika Garg under guardianship of Deepika Chopra] filed under Section 25 of the Guardianship and Wards Act, 1925 before the court of Additional Principal Judge, Court No. 8, Lucknow within two weeks from today. The court concerned on filing of the said application shall terminate the proceedings expeditiously and not later than a period of two months from the date of filing of the withdrawal application.
(d) The opposite party No. 5 shall make an application for withdrawal of Regular Suit No. 2236 of 2019 [Nikhil Garg Vs. Deepika Chopra] instituted under Section 13(1)A of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The petitioner and opposite party No. 5 shall simultaneously institute a suit for mutual divorce before the Family Court under Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act. The application for withdrawal of pending suit and for mutual divorce shall be filed within a period of three weeks from today. The Family Court is directed to pass orders as soon as the withdrawal application and suit for mutual divorce are filed and shall proceed to terminate the proceedings of mutual divorce within a period of two months from the date of filing of the suit by the petitioner and the opposite party No. 5 seeking mutual divorce. The Family Court shall waive the statutory period under Section 13-B(2) of the Hindu Marriage Act considering the fact that there is an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. The parties are living separately since 04.02.2019 which is much beyond the period of six months and all efforts for mediation/ conciliation including the efforts in terms of Order XXXII-A Rule 3 of C.P.C./ Section 23(2) of the Act/Section 9 of the Family Courts Act reuniting the parties has failed and there is no likelihood of success in that direction at any further effort.
It is to be noted that the parties have genuinely settled their differences including the custody of the minor child or for any pending cases or issues between them. The waiting period will only prolong their agony. Thus the waiver application will also be permitted to be filed along with the application under Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act. The Family Court shall consider and dispose of all the applications for waiver as well as pass final order/ decree dissolving the marriage between the parties within a period of two months from the date of filing the application/ suit. The certified copy of the decree passed by the Family Court shall be presented before the Finance Company, so that the personal guarantee extended by the petitioner is terminated as per the undertaking recorded above. The Finance Company shall issue a formal letter to this effect, not later than a period of one week on the receipt of the judgment/ decree passed by the Family Court under Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act.
In the present case, the jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India was invoked with respect to an F.I.R. lodged against the opposite party Nos. 5, 6 and 7, under Sections 420, 498-A, 323, 504, 506 I.P.C.
Since both the parties have agreed not to pursue any civil or criminal case against each other, therefore, the jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India calls for setting all the controversies at rest in the light of amicable settlement arrived at between the parties. The F.I.R. lodged by the petitioner on 18.06.2019, under Sections 420, 498-A, 323, 504, 506 I.P.C. of Police Station Mahanagar, District Lucknow and the other subsequent proceedings resulting therefrom in view of the terms of the settlement, are hereby quashed.
The present writ petition shall stand disposed of accordingly.
The settlement arrived at between the parties on 26.03.2021 duly signed by both of the parties and filed before this Court as taken on record shall form part of this order.
Order Date :- 26.3.2021
Mustaqeem
