Anita vs Rati Ram Chauhan
2011 Latest Caselaw 5343 Del

*      IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

+              Crl. Rev. P. 726/2010 & Crl. M.A. 17479/2011

%                                      Reserved on: 8th August, 2011

                                       Decided on:   4th November, 2011


ANITA                                                ..... Petitioner
                            Through:     Mr. Ratnesh Bansal, Advocate

                          versus

RATI RAM CHAUHAN                                    ..... Respondents
                Through:                 Mr. Shailender Dahiya, Advocate
                                         with Respondent in person.
Coram:
HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE MUKTA GUPTA

1. Whether the Reporters of local papers may         Not Necessary
   be allowed to see the judgment?

2. To be referred to Reporter or not?                Yes

3. Whether the judgment should be reported           Yes
   in the Digest?

MUKTA GUPTA, J.

1. By this petition the Petitioner seeks quashing of the Judgment

dated 10th September, 2010 passed in case number 95/2010 by the learned

Additional Principal Judge dismissing the application of the Petitioner

seeking maintenance from the Respondent under Section 125 Cr. P. C.

2. Briefly the facts are that the marriage between the parties was

solemnized on 23rd February, 1996. The Petitioner claims that the

Respondent and his family members were not satisfied with the dowry

articles presented at the time of marriage. They started ill treating her and

raised a demand of Rs. 1 Lac and a car. On 17th April, 1996 the

Respondent, his father and sister pushed her down from the roof of the

matrimonial home resulting in serious injuries to the Complainant. She

was then removed by the neighbors to Gupta Nursing Home. The nursing

home however did not admit her and referred her instead to Mata Chanan

Devi Hospital. On 27th April, 1996 the Petitioner was discharged from

Mata Chanan Devi Hospital and since then she has been staying in her

parental home. After about 17-20 months, the Petitioner lodged a

complaint with the police for the said incident and a case FIR No. 34/98

was registered under Section 498A/307/406/34 IPC. In the said trial the

Respondent and his family members were acquitted by the learned

Additional Session Judge. The Respondent in May, 1998 filed a petition

for dissolution of marriage on the ground of cruelty and the marriage was

dissolved by learned District Session Judge vide Judgment and decree

dated 26th May, 2007. Vide this Judgment, the Petitioner was granted Rs.

3,000/- per month as alimony. There is however an appeal pending in this

court filed by the Petitioner vide Mat. App. 46/2007. The Petitioner

claims that after her injury, she is unable to move and the Respondent has

not made any provision for her medical treatment or maintenance and is

refusing to maintain her without any sufficient cause. Hence the present

petition.

3. The learned Counsel for Petitioner contends that the learned

Additional Principal Judge in the impugned Judgment has placed great

reliance on the fact that the Respondent and his family members have

been acquitted by the learned Additional Session Judge. According to

him this acquittal was not binding on the family court and therefore the

maintenance application should have been decided on its own merits de-

hors the findings of the learned Additional Sessions Judge in the criminal

trial.

4. It is stated that as per Section 125 Cr. P. C if a person with

sufficient means neglects or refuses to maintain his wife then he is liable

to pay her maintenance. Learned Counsel states that the learned

Additional Principal Judge failed to appreciate the fact that during trial

the Respondent admitted his liability to maintain the Petitioner but had

not shown any intention to take the Petitioner back to the matrimonial

home.

5. Learned Counsel for Petitioner further states that the Petitioner has

appealed against the Judgment dated 26th May, 2007 passed by the

learned Additional Session Judge dissolving her marriage which is still

pending in this Court. Under these circumstances the alimony of Rs.

3,000/- per month granted to the Petitioner in the divorce proceedings

should have been disregarded by the learned Additional Principal Judge

while deciding the petition for maintenance.

6. Learned Counsel for Respondent on the other hand contends that

the Respondent had never neglected to maintain the Petitioner. On the

17th April 1996, the Petitioner slipped from the stairs when the Petitioner

and his father were not at home. The entire medical expenses were borne

by the Respondent. The Respondent being a Government employee is

entitled to all the facilities of medical treatment under CGHS and had

repeatedly asked the Petitioner to get treated at any CGHS hospital. But

all she did was demand money in lieu of medical expenses, trying to

cause the Respondent wrongful loss. The Petitioner was never meted

with cruelty. It is the Petitioner who has deserted the Respondent as she

was not interested in maintaining the relations.

7. I have heard learned Counsels for the parties. While adjudicating

any issue it is the responsibility of the Judge to consider all the facts and

circumstances. Proceedings under Section 125 CrPC are summons trial

proceedings. The Court is justified on relying upon the findings of the

competent Court in a criminal trial for the offences alleged and regarding

cruelty by the matrimonial Court. In Inderjit Kaur vs. Union of India

(1990) 1 SCC 344 it was held that, that Section 125 CrPC provides a

speedy remedy against starvation of the civil liabilities of the parties, the

order made thereunder is tentative and is subject to final determination of

the rights in civil court. Further in Teja Singh vs. Chhoto 1981Crl. L.J.

1467 (Punjab & Haryana) while dealing with a similar issue it was held

that even if an order granting maintenance had been passed in favour of

the wife and if thereafter a decision between the parties is rendered by the

civil court which has a bearing on the question which came up for

consideration earlier before the Court dealing with the petition under

Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, it has to give effect to the

civil court order by cancelling the order granting maintenance if such is

the import of the judgment of the civil court. In case of Sri Jasholal

Agrawala @ Jain vs. Smt. Puspabati Agrawala, 1994 Crl.LJ 185 the

High Court of Orissa it was held that it has to be taken as an accepted

principle that the finding of the civil court in a matrimonial proceeding is

binding on the criminal court and the criminal court is not entitled to

question the correctness or validity of the civil court decision.

8. The learned Additional Principal Judge was therefore justified in

relying on the fact that the learned Additional District Judge by Judgment

dated 26th May, 2007 had dissolved the marriage of the parties on the

ground of cruelty by the Petitioner and had the Respondent actually been

harassing or neglecting the Petitioner then he would have never

succeeded in the divorce petition. The fact that the Respondent allowed

bed ridden Petitioner to go to her parental home so that she could be

looked after by her mother was also found to be convincing since the

Respondent had no female member in his family.

9. It is relevant to note that the Petitioner in her statement has

admitted before doctor in the Hospital that she had slipped from the stairs

on the day of incident. The Petitioner has not placed anything on record

to show that there was any pressure from the side of Respondent on her to

give that statement. Further, the father of the Petitioner in his statement

before Court admitted that when he visited his daughter in the Hospital

she did not tell him anything. From a perusal of the statements of

witnesses, it is clear that the claim of the Petitioner that Respondents

failed to maintain her and willfully neglected her is not substantiated.

10. As per the record the Respondent had filed the medical bills of

Mata Chanan Devi Hospital as evidence of making payment of the same.

The father of the Petitioner in his explanation for the bills being in

possession of the Respondent had stated that the respondent had stolen

the bills from him. But this story is completely contradictory to his other

statement wherein he had said that the Respondent never visited the

Petitioner in the hospital or thereafter. Thus the Respondent had no

occasion to commit the theft of the bills from the Petitioner or her father.

Therefore it can be safely held that the Respondent bore the expenses of

the Petitioner's treatment in the hospital and he was not negligent in his

responsibilities towards the Petitioner.

11. The Petitioner has not been able to adduce any evidence to support

her contention of being neglected by the Respondent. Moreover there is

no explanation rendered by the Petitioner as to why she did not inform

her neighbour or any other person who allegedly removed her to the

nursing home that she was thrown by the Respondent or his father.

Further the fact that the Complaint under Sections 498A, 406, 307 & 34

IPC was filed by the Petitioner after about 17-20 months of the incident

shows that the same was an after thought. The Respondent on the other

hand has adduced evidence to show that he had not neglected to maintain

the Petitioner and is even paying Rs. 3,000/- per month regularly as

directed by the learned Additional District Judge vide the Judgment dated

26th May, 2007.

12. Learned Additional Principal Judge has considered all the relevant

issues and scrutinize the matter. I do not find any infirmity in the

Judgment dated 10th September, 2010.

The revision petition and the application are accordingly dismissed.

(MUKTA GUPTA) JUDGE NOVEMBER 04, 2011 vkm