Six-months wait for divorce under Hindu Marriage Act waived off by SC

If a Hindu married couple is separating by mutual consent then they no longer need to wait for six months for getting a separating order from the court. On Tuesday Supreme Court held that marriage between two Hindus can be legally terminated in just a week as the “cooling off” period can be waived off as it is not mandatory. The Apex court clarified that if all the efforts to reunite parties and mediation and conciliation also fails between them then the wait for a six-month period can be done away with. This ruling was passed by the court after a petition was filed by a couple seeking direction to waive off the cooling off period as they have been living separately for 8 years and they had already settled all issues pertaining to child custody and alimony.The couple made a plea before the Supreme Court that delay in divorce would affect their chances to resettle in life. In the present matter, the court took a stand that delay in proceedings only prolongs subsequent resettlement. Waiving off period can be considered if the parties have been living separately already for a year. The court said, “The object of the provision is to enable the parties to dissolve a marriage by consent if the marriage has irretrievably broken down and to enable them to rehabilitate them as per available options. The amendment was inspired by the thought that forcible perpetuation of the status of matrimony between unwilling partners did not serve any purpose. The object of the cooling off period was to safeguard against a hurried decision if there was otherwise the possibility of differences being reconciled.” The bench comprising of Justice AK Goel and UU Lalit said that the object of the cooling off period is to safeguard against a hurried decision taken by a couple to get separated and to allow them to explore ways to settle their disputes however this could not be made mandatory. As per Section 13B(2) of the Hindu Marriage if both the parties do not change their pleas for divorce in a time period not less than six months and not later than 18 months, then the court pass the decree to declaring the marriage to be dissolved. The court observed that the period of six months to 18 months provided in section 13B is an interregnum to give time and opportunity for the couple to reflect on their move. This period can be waived off if conciliation fails and parties have genuinely settled their differences pertaining to alimony, custody of the child or any other issues pending between them. The bench observed, “The object was not to perpetuate a purposeless marriage or to prolong the agony of the parties when there was no chance of reconciliation. Though every effort has to be made to save a marriage, if there are no chances of reunion and there are chances of fresh rehabilitation, the court should not be powerless in enabling the parties to have a better option.” The Supreme Court bench after examining all the issues came to the conclusion that Section 13B(2) is mandatory and not a directory. The court held that the cooling off period could be waived off if the court is satisfied that the parties are living separately for more than a year with no chance of reconciliation and a further waiting period would only prolong their agony. The bench held that the parties can file a waiver application just one week after the divorce petition is filed and the court will take a call on the waiving off period. The Author Mrs.Bobby Portia Alex is the top lady Divorce lawyer in Chennai For Free Legal queries call Daniel & Daniel At 9551716256

Living with another woman and not maintaining wife amounts to Domestic Violence

The omission of the husband is neglecting to maintain the wife and living with another woman amounts to “economic” and “emotional” abuse and wife is entitled to protection under Domestic Violence Act. In the present matter, the wife has filed a petition for maintenance after three decades. Considering this the husband contended that his wife had no grievance from past 30 years about his second marriage and hence her claim is barred by limitation. The court observed, the question of limitation raised by the husband cannot be accepted mechanically only on the point that the petition for maintenance was filed after three decades. Justice Rathnakala said, “the obligation of the husband continues throughout the marriage and the husband cannot get away with the excuse that for many years the wife did not make any request for maintenance.” The court explained that “Domestic violence” as defined under Section 3 of the Act among others take into fold “economic abuse” as well. The omission of the husband to maintain the wife during the matrimonial life comes within the ambit of Section 3 of the Act. The very fact that he has led life with another woman and begot children from her amounts to “emotional abuse” as contemplated under the Act. This affects the physical and the mental well being of the aggrieved person and this can be termed as domestic violence under the Act. In this case, the court held that the husband is guilty of domestic violence and the wife is entitled to protection under Domestic Violence Act. The limitation cannot be a ground for the husband to escape limitation. Author Mrs.Bobby Portia Alex is the leading Domestic violence Lady Advocate in Chennai for Free legal queries call Daniel & Daniel @ 95517176256

Husband is obligated to maintain minor child even if wife leaves him

The father cannot run away from the responsibility nor can he be allowed to skip his obligations to maintain his son or daughter and father is duty-bound to provide all facilities, including better facilities for education and health for his minor child. Applicant’s advocate argued that it was his client’s wife who had voluntarily withdrawn from the company of her husband and hence was not entitled to maintenance Also, his client has filed a petition filed under Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 for restitution of conjugal rights which was allowed by a Bhopal Court on January 16, 2016. The Court held that it is the duty of every father duty to maintain his minor child, the court said: “In the present case, it is established on record that from 12.6.2012 present applicant, who is a father of minor son Aryan, has not shouldered his responsibility to provide even the basic amenities to his son. It is not the case of applicant/father that he has provided any financial aid to his wife in order to show that he has shouldered his responsibility as a father. In that view of the matter, the present applicant cannot agitate the issue before this Court on the ground that his wife has withdrawn her company from his society. The wife may withdraw the company, but that does not absolve the responsibility of the father to provide maintenance to his son or daughter.” In the instant matter court passed an order of maintenance of INR 7,000 per month and an additional cost of INR 25,000 was imposed. Article by Advocate Mrs.Bobby Portia Alex is a Top child custody lawyer in Chennai for free legal queries call Daniel & Daniel @ 9551716256

Biological father taking away of child does not amount to Kidnapping

The biological father cannot be charged for kidnapping his own child. In the instant matter, the court was hearing a petition filed by Mumbai’s businessman, Sajid Shah for challenging his extradition request from the Netherlands to India. His estranged wife Nazneen has filed a complaint against him for abducting their 2-year-old daughter from Amsterdam. After kidnapping the daughter he brought her back to India in September 2016. She has accused Sajid Shah of “violently kidnapping their daughter” from her house and also launched an online campaign for the child’s return. Subsequently, an Interpol notice was issued for Sajid’s arrest. Following the Interpol notice, the Netherlands government approached the Indian authorities. Nazneen and Sajid married in 2011 and got separated in 2016. After the couple separated, a Dutch court awarded Nazneen their daughter’s custody in 2016. Meanwhile, Sajid filed a divorce and custody petition before Bandra family court. Sajid claimed he was trying to protect his daughter from his “abusive wife”. The MEA, in it’s May 5, 2017, letter, rejected the extradition request. The center in its affidavit submitted “Since the taking away of a child by her biological father does not amount to kidnapping, it is not an extraditable offence.” MEA has rejected the extradition request while stating that Sajid shall not be arrested and no corrective steps will be taken against him and his daughter. Article by Advocate Mrs.Bobby Portia Alex is a leading Child Custody Advocate for free legal queries call Daniel & Daniel @ 9551716256.

Welfare of the Minor is the paramount consideration of Child Custody

The minors should not be treated as “Chattel” for claiming custody. In the present matter, the six-year Jhanvi was staying with her father. Jhanvi’s mother deserted her husband and her young daughter on 23rd March 2012. At that time, Jhanvi was only 2- year old. Subsequently, Jhanvi’s father filed for a divorce and sought permanent custody of their daughter. During the pendency of this above petition, Jhanvi was allowed to meet her mother twice a week and during summer and winter vacations. Petitioner claims that her daughter was physically abused by her mother on multiple occasions. Also, her medical reports confirm that she suffered “multiple bruises, apart from tenderness over her arms, roots of nose and back” after meeting her mother on January, 28. Again, she suffered similar injuries on February 18. Later she informed her father that she does not intend to meet her mother as she use to hit and pinch her. The petitioner pleads that since his daughter has been physically tortured and traumatized by her mother, she should not be allowed to meet her mother. At the same time, he also requested the court to get his daughter evaluated by a child psychologist. Subsequent to the request of the petitioner, the family court appointed Dr. Harish Shetty who is a psychiatrist as Jhanvi’s psychologist. However, the petitioner vehemently objected to this as Dr. Harish was a psychiatrist and not psychologist. Jhanvi's mother blatantly denied all the allegations and stated that Jhanvi was not with her when such incidents are claimed to have occurred. The Bombay High Court observed that this was a clear case of child abuse and “It is well settled that welfare of minor is paramount consideration for deciding even a temporary custody of a minor. Minors cannot be treated as chattel for claiming custody.” Considering Jhanvi’s apprehension and looking into her safety and well-being, the court has stayed the order passed by Family Court which permitted her mother to meet her. Article by Advocate Mrs.Bobby Portia Alex leading child custody advocate in Chennai for legal queries contact Daniel & Daniel @ 9551716256

False cases filed by wife in Chennai

In the past few years, the trend of filing false cases and implicating men by exploiting women-oriented laws has released exponentially. Here is a list of things that one must keep in mind to steer clear of such false charges. FIGHT INTERIM MAINTENANCE CASES: The golden rule is to put everything on hold and fight the interim maintenance case. Divorce cases are inordinately delayed in India, increasing the burden on husbands to provide for interim maintenance while the case is pending. The longer the case is delayed for, the higher the frustration level in husbands as they are expected to cough up maintenance money even for that period. Moreover, since the wife is getting a monthly maintenance, chances are she is least bothered about rushing the process of divorce. The best strategy in such a scenario is to reduce interim maintenance to a minimum amount at the initial stage only. ADVANTAGE OF LOW INTERIM MAINTENANCE: Getting low monthly interim maintenance creates a psychological pressure and crushes the hopes of a wife to get a big lump-sum amount post-divorce.In cases where the divorce is inordinately delayed, the husband can still afford to pay the wife a low interim maintenance without him exhausting his finances.Low maintenance on behalf of the husband psychologically frees him and helps him focus on more important issues like collecting more evidence to help his case. COLLECT PROOF REGARDING WIFE’S SOCIAL STATUS: Often repeated statement by husbands is “my wife works but I don’t have proof”. Hence, the top-most priority becomes to collect proof regarding wife’s working, income, job profile, etc.          The following are some handy tips to collect proof: Check her social media profiles like Facebook and LinkedIn for information related to her workplaceGet hold of a business card that shows her name, company and designationIncome Tax Return is the best proof for incomeTry to get details of the EPF (employee provident fund) from the workplaceTry getting in touch with someone from the wife’s workplace; try not to do this overtly CORROBORATE YOUR STORY WITH EVIDENCE: It is important to form a chain of events along with proof that has been collected by you. Follow the given steps to concretize your evidence: Write complete details from the time of the engagement till the time the wife left, from your marriage to honeymoon to other incidents where the wife may have left the matrimonial home. Document this information.Try to get in as many details as possible, even the smallest ones, in order to assist the lawyer in filing a strong abjection or divorce case.Make a list of all the important out of town visits, phone calls, family functions, emails that may have been exchanges, etc. EVIDENCE: Evidence will include every documents, picture, bills, etc. that will help your lawyer counter claims made by your wife. Collect all photographs of wedding and honeymoon and other social functions which depict that the couple was in a natural, healthy relationship. This will help counter claims of domestic abuse and violence.Collect family videos depicting your relationshipGet copies of your bank and credit card statementsKeep a record of all the messages sent by your wife to you; such information may be incriminating in natureOnce the case has been filed, record all phone conversations The above mentioned steps can help you make a strong case and counter all false claims made by your wife against you. The author K.P.Satish Kumar is the Top Divorce lawyer in Chennai Our whattsapp Service No.9840802218

Quick Divorce in India

Supreme court in land mark Judgment has waived a 6 months cooling period in the case of Mutual consent divorce. It held Section 13B(2) of the Hindu Marriage Act is not mandatory but directory, it will be open to the Court to exercise its discretion in the facts and circumstances of each case where there is no possibility of parties resuming cohabitation and there are chances of alternative rehabilitation. It has also said that in conducting such proceedings the Court can also use the medium of video conferencing and also permit genuine representation of the parties through close relations such as parents or siblings where the parties are unable to appear in person for any just and valid reason as may satisfy the Court, to advance the interest of justice. Section 13B(1) relates to jurisdiction of the Court and the petition is maintainable only if the parties are living separately for a period of one year or more and if they have not been able to live together and have agreed that the marriage be dissolved. Section 13B(2) is procedural. He submitted that the discretion to waive the period is a guided discretion by consideration of interest of justice where there is no chance of reconciliation and parties were already separated for a longer period or contesting proceedings for a period longer than the period mentioned in Section 13B(2). Thus, the Court should consider the questions: i) How long parties have been married? ii) How long litigation is pending? iii) How long they have been staying apart? iv) Are there any other proceedings between the parties? v) Have the parties attended mediation/conciliation? vi) Have the parties arrived at genuine settlement which takes care of alimony, custody of child or any other pending issues between the parties? The Court must be satisfied that the parties were living separately for more than the statutory period and all efforts at mediation and reconciliation have been tried and have failed and there is no chance of reconciliation and further waiting period will only prolong their agony. On such cases when a party make a petition to dispense the 6 months cooling period, then the court will use its discretionary power to grant mutual consent divorce as early after a week time. The Author Mr.K.P.Satish Kumar M.L. is the leading divorce lawyer in Chennai. Talk to the top divorce lawyer @ 95517176256 and send your queries to our whattsapp service No.9840802218.

Self Respect Marriage in Tamilnadu

What is Section 7a of Hindu Marriage Act 1955 ? To who it is applicable ? In the State of Tamil Nadu, an amendment was introduced by Act 21 of 1967, Section 7-A was inserted in the Hindu Marriage Act. The relevant part of the Section reads us follows :-- "7-A. Special provision regarding suyamariyathai and seerthiruththa marriages.- (1) This Section shall apply to any marriage between any two Hindus, whether called suyamariyathai marriage or seerthiruththa marriage or by any other name, solemnised in the presence of relatives, friends or other persons.- (a) by each party to the marriage declaring in any language understood by the parties that each takes the other to be his wife or as the case may be, her husband; (b) by each party to the marriage garlanding the other or putting a ring upon any finger of the other; or (c) by the tying of the thali, (2) (a) Notwithstanding anything contained in Section 7, but subject to the other provisions of this Act, ail marriages to which this Section applies solemnized after the commencement of the Hindu Marriage (Madras Amendment) Act, 1067, shall be good and valid in law. (b) Notwithstanding anything contained in SECTION 7 or in any text, rule or interpretation of Hindu law or any custom or usage as part of that law in force immediately before the commencement of the Hindu Marriage Madras Amendment) Act, 1967, or in any other law in force immediately before such commencement or in any judgment, decree or order of any Court, but subject to sub-section. 8. Section 8 of the Hindu Marriage Act provides for registration of Hindu Marriages for the purpose of facilitating the proof of such marriages. Under that section, the Stale Government is empowered to make rules providing that the parties to any such marriagemay have the particulars relating'to their marriage entered in such manner and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed in a Hindu Marriage Register kept for the purpose. Thus the section contemplates registration only of marriages which had already taken place. The ceremonies for the marriage are prescribed by Section 7 of the Act. Now Section 7 of the Act is introduced by Madras Amendment Act 21/1967. A marriage has to be solemnized in the presence of relatives, friends or other persons in the manner prescribed in that Section. In a case where the provisions of Section 7 or Section 7-A are not complied with, there is no question of there being a Hindu Marriage between a man and woman, as contemplated by the Act. Without such a marriage (sic)their as prescribed under Section 7 or as prescribed under Section 7-A, there cannot be registration of marriage between man and woman under the provisions of Section 8 of the Act. The Author K.P.Satish Kumar M.L. is the leading family court lawyer in Chennai. For queries our whattsapp service No.9840802218.

கணவன் தன்னுடைய 2வது மனைவியை தன்னோடு சேர்த்து வாழ மனு தாக்கல் செய்ய முடியாது.

முதல் மனைவி உயிரோடிருக்கும் போது இரண்டாவது திருமணம் செய்து கொண்ட கணவன் தன்னுடைய 2வது மனைவியை தன்னோடு சேர்த்து வாழ (Restitition Conjugal Rights) உத்தரவிடும் படி குடும்ப நீதிமன்றத்தில் மனு தாக்கல் செய்ய முடியாது. அவ்வாறு செய்யப்பட்ட திருமணம் இந்து திருமணச் சட்டம் பிரிவு 5ல் கூறப்பட்டுள்ள நிபந்தனைகளுக்கு முரணானதாகும். இந்து திருமணச் சட்டம் பிரிவு 11ன் படி அத்தகைய திருமணங்கள் சட்டப்படி செல்லாத திருமணமாகும். எனவே 2வதாக திருமணம் செய்து கொள்கிற போது முதல் மனைவி உயிரோடு இருந்தால் 2வதாக திருமணம் செய்து கொண்ட மனைவியின் மீது இந்து திருமணச் சட்டம் பிரிவு 9 அல்லது 13 ன் கீழ் கணவர் எந்த ஒரு மனுவையும் தாக்கல் செய்ய முடியாது Talk to the Leading Divorce Lawyer in Chennai @ 9551716256