The Andhra Pradesh High Court set aside the order of the trial court which refused to direct the respondent to undergo a medical test after his wife alleged impotency and held that a matrimonial Court has the power to order a person to undergo a medical test and it cannot be contended that the relief cannot be granted merely because the marriage was denied by a party.

Brief Facts:

The petitioner filed a petition the annul her marriage with the respondent after the marriage was not consummated owing to the impotency of the respondent after which the respondent denied the solemnization of marriage. Thereafter, the petitioner filed a petition under Section 45 of the Indian Evidence Act seeking an order from the court directing the respondent to undergo a medical examination to prove her case through scientific evidence which was dismissed by the trial court. The petitioner then filed the present petition under Article 227 against this order.

Contentions of the Applicant:

The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner contended that the relief claimed by the petitioner is within the jurisdiction of the trial Court and that the ground taken by the revision petitioner can be decided only by the opinion of an expert and placed reliance on the judgment in Sharda vs. Dharmpal in support of his argument.

Contentions of the Respondent:

The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondents contended that without there being any evidence of the alleged marriage, granting the relief claimed by the petitioner would amount to the collection of evidence that has no relevance.

Observations of the Court:

The court stated that the petitioner will not only have to establish the marriage but also the ground pleaded for relief and whatever evidence is required for the same, it can be adduced only during the course of enquiry and the evidence of one fact is not supposed to be lead after proof of the other. It was further stated that it was a matter of appreciation of evidence after the trial is concluded, as to whether the petitioner is able to prove the marriage or not.

The court further referred to the judgment in Sharda vs. Dharmpal to state that a matrimonial Court has the power to order a person to undergo a medical test, it cannot be contended that the relief cannot be granted in the present merely because the marriage was denied.

The court further stated that the trial court ought to have allowed the petition to secure all the material evidence required to enable the court to decide the matter on its merits but it failed to exercise its jurisdiction.

The decision of the Court:

The court allowed the petition, set aside the impugned order and directed the respondent to undergo a medical test.

Case Title: X vs. Y

Coram: Hon’ble Mr. Justice B.S Bhanumathi

Case No.: Civil Revision Petition No.1067 of 2022

Advocate for the Applicant: Mr. Vivekananda Virupaksha

Advocate for the Respondent: Mr. V. Surya Kiran Kumar,

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