Telangana High Court

Gajjala Koyyada Manasa vs Gajjala Srikanth on 1 March, 2024

     HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE LAXMI NARAYANA ALISHETTY

                   Tr.C.M.P.No.01 OF 2024

ORDER:

This Transfer Civil Miscellaneous Petition is filed by

the petitioner - wife seeking transfer of H.M.O.P.No.23 of

2023 from the file of the Senior Civil Judge, Asifabad to the

Court of Senior Civil Judge Court, Peddapalli.

2. The brief facts leading to file the present Tr.C.M.P.

are that the marriage of the petitioner - wife was

solemnized with the respondent - husband on 29.01.2020

at Arya Vyshya Kalyana Mandapam, Sirpur Kagaznagar, as

per the prevailing customs in their community. It is an

inter-caste marriage and they were blessed with a female

child on 10.11.2020.

3. In view of the harassment and differences, the

petitioner - wife filed a complaint against the respondent -

husband before the Police, Basanthnagar Police Station,

Ramagundam, and an FIR No.237 of 2023, dated

04.11.2023, was registered for the offences punishable

under Sections 498-A r/w Section 34 I.P.C and Section 4 of

the Dowry Probation Act Act. The respondent filed 2 LNA, J

H.M.O.P.No.23 of 2023 on the file of the Court of Senior

Civil Judge, Asifabad, under Section 13(1)(1a) of the Hindu

Marriage Act, 1955, seeking divorce and the said case is

pending adjudication. In the meanwhile, the petitioner -

wife filed a Domestic Violence Case vide DVC (SR) No.1809

of 2023 on the file of the Court of Hon'ble Judicial

Magistrate of First Class at Peddapalli and the same is

pending.

4. It is stated that the petitioner cannot travel alone

from Peddapalli to Asifabad and there is a threat to her life;

that for every hearing, the petitioner has to take assistance

from her family members to travel from Peddapalli to

Asifabad, which is very difficult; that DVS (SR) NO.1809 of

2023 filed by her is pending before the Senior Civil Judge

Court at Peddapalli. The petitioner, therefore, prayed to

transfer H.M.O.P.No.23 of 2023, which is filed by the

respondent-husband, from the Court of Senior Civil Judge

Asifabad to the Court of Senior Civil Judge, Peddapalli.

3 LNA, J

5. Heard Sri K. Sravan Kumar, the learned counsel for

the petitioner and Sri Saidam Laxmi narayana, the learned

counsel for the respondent. Perused the record.

6. Learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that

the petitioner is not having any income and that she is

dependent on her parents for her survival. He also

submits that it is difficult for the petitioner to look after the

minor child and attend the Court at Asifabad on each and

every date of hearing and that the distance between

Peddapaali to Asifabad is more than 108 Kilometers. He

further submits that the other case i.e., Domestic Violence

Case filed by the petitioner is pending in the Court at

Peddapalli. The learned counsel, therefore, prayed to

transfer the H.M.O.P.No.23 of 2023 pending on the file of

the Court of Senior Civil Judge, Asifabad to the Court of

Senior Civil Judge, Peddapalli.

7. Learned counsel for the petitioner further contended

that in the transfer proceedings of matrimonial disputes,

the convenience of the wife has to be considered, rather 4 LNA, J

than the convenience of the husband and therefore, the

request of the petitioner-wife needs to be considered. In

support of the said contentions, learned counsel for the

petitioner relied upon a judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme

Court in NVC Aishwarya Vs A.S. Saravana Karthik

Sha 1.

8. On the other hand, learned counsel for the

respondent - husband would submit that the respondent

filed H.M.O.P.No.23 of 2023 seeking divorce in August,

2023, whereas the petitioner filed DVC (SR).No.1809 of

2023 in November, 2023, which is not yet numbered.

Therefore, it is clear that the petitioner has filed the

Domestic Violence Case subsequent to the filing of the

H.M.O.P.No.23 of 2023 by the respondent. The learned

counsel, therefore, prayed to dismiss the Transfer C.M.P.

09. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in NCV Aishwarya Vs

A.S.Saravana Karthik Sha 2 held as follows:

2022 SSC online SC 1199

2022 SCC Online SC 1199 5 LNA, J

"9. The cardinal principle for exercise of power under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure is that the ends of justice should demand the transfer of the suit, appeal or other proceeding. In matrimonial matters, wherever Courts are called upon to consider the plea of transfer, the Courts have to take into consideration the economic soundness of both the parties, the social strata of the spouses and their behavioural pattern, their standard of life prior to the marriage and subsequent thereto and the circumstances of both the parties in eking out their livelihood and under whose protective umbrella they are seeking their sustenance to life. Given the prevailing socio- economic paradigm in the Indian society, generally, it is the wife's convenience which must be looked at while considering transfer."

10. The principle of law laid down by the Hon'ble

Supreme Court in N.C.V.Aishwarya's case (supra 2), has

been reiterated by the High Court of Bombay in Devika

Dhiraj Patil Nee Devika Jayprakash Buttepatil v.

Dhiraj Sunil Patil 3, wherein it was observed as under:-

"In a country like India, important decisions such as marriage, divorce are still taken with the guidance and blessings of elders in the family. For a lady to travel alone for the proceedings to a Court where the fate of her marriage is going to be

(2023 SCC OnLine Bom 1926) 6 LNA, J

decided without any family member would definitely be a matter of concern and cause not only physical inconvenience but also emotional and psychological inconvenience

11. Further, in the case of Priyanka Rahul Patil vs.

Rahul Ravindra Patil 4, the High court of Bombay followed

the principle laid down in N.C.V.Aishwarya's case

(supra 2) and Dhiraj Sunil Patil's case (supra 3) and held

as follows:-