Smt. Aarti Chourasiya vs Akhilesh Chourasiya

A.K. Shrivastava, J.—Heard on the question of admission. The petitioner is the wife who has filed an application u/s 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act (for short "the Act") for obtaining the decree of divorce before the Second Additional Principal Judge, Family Court, Jabalpur which is pending for its adjudication. An application u/s 24 of the Act was filed by the present petitioner praying to allow interim maintenance as well as litigation charges. The said application has been dismissed by the Second Additional Principal Judge of the Family Court, Jabalpur on 30.4.2013 and this order has been assailed by the wife in this petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India.

I have heard learned counsel for the parties at length. On bare perusal of the impugned order this Court finds that without assigning the cogent reasons the application has been straightway rejected. On bare perusal of Section 24 of the said Act, the maintenance pendente lite and litigation expenses can be claimed either by the wife or the husband in any proceeding under the said Act by demonstrating that he or she has no source of income. The learned Family Court has not at all taken into consideration this aspect of the matter and has rejected the application.

In this view of the matter, the impugned order cannot be allowed to remain stand. The same is hereby set aside and the learned Second Additional Principal Judge, Family Court, Jabalpur is hereby directed to redecide the application by taking into account the scope of Section 24 of the Act. The parties are free to file the documents. The wife/petitioner is free to file necessary affidavit and material in order to infer that she is not having any source of independent income. Similarly, the husband/respondent may also file necessary material of his income. The wife is free to file necessary material in regard to the income of the husband. This petition is accordingly allowed and disposed of. The impugned order dated 30.4.2013 is set aside. No order as to costs.