Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
846/2008 on 20 December, 2013
Author: Asim Kumar Ray
Bench: Asim Kumar Ray
1 20-12-13
Item No. 32 C.O. 846 of 2008
AD
Mr. Amitabha Ghosh.
... for the petitioner.
This revisional application is directed against the order dated 18th December, 2007, passed in MAT Suit No. 1121 of 2007 by learned Additional District Judge, Basirhat, North 24- Parganas, wherein an application under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act was allowed directing the opposite party/husband to pay a sum of Rs. 500/- to the petitioner/wife and also a sum of Rs. 500/- to her minor child month by month towards the alimony pendente lite.
The factual background in a nutshell is that the opposite party/husband, Pranab Sarkar, initiated the MAT Suit No. 1121 of 2007 against the petitioner/wife seeking divorce. The petitioner entered appearance in the MAT Suit as opposite party. She filed an application praying for alimony pendente lite. That application has been disposed of by the order impugned. Being aggrieved, this is the revisional application.
Let it be recorded that none appears to represent the opposite party/husband in spite of effective service.
Mr. Ghosh, learned Advocate appearing for the petitioner/wife, submits that the opposite party/husband is an employee of the judgeship of North 24-Parganas and posted at Basirhat. The matter was transferred to the court of Additional District Judge, Barasat, North 24-Parganas, for disposal. The opposite party/husband was stenographer of the Additional District Judge, Basirhat, North 24-Parganas. The said court, i.e. the Additional District Judge, Basirhat, passed the order impugned.
The petitioner/wife took out an application and filed it before the learned District Judge, North 24-Parganas at Barasat, praying for transfer of the matter from the court of Additional District Judge, Basirhat. The said prayer was allowed and the matter was transferred to the court of learned District Judge, 2 North 24-Parganas at Barasat and subsequently, transferred to the court of Additional District Judge, Fast Track, 3rd Court, Barasat, North 24-Parganas. The order impugned is for a meagre amount as alimony pendente lite which may be interfered with and set aside.
Perused the revisional application and the order impugned. On perusal of the record, it appears that the petitioner/wife filed a misc. case under Section 125 of Cr.P.C. against the opposite party/husband before the appropriate court of learned Magistrate praying for maintenance. That misc. case has been allowed directing the opposite party/husband to pay a sum of Rs. 500/- for the petitioner/wife and also a sum of Rs. 500/- to her minor child. Beside it, the petition under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act was filed before the Additional District Judge, Basirhat, North 24-Parganas. The application under Section 24 has been allowed by the impugned order directing the opposite party/husband to pay a sum of Rs. 500/-each to the petitioner/wife and child towards their alimony pendete lite. On perusal of the order passed by the learned District Judge, North 24-Parganas, in Misc. case No. 66 of 2008, it appears that the opposite party/husband was a stenographer attached to the court of learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Basirhat in the year 2008. There is no paper before the court to show that the opposite party/husband was attached to the court of learned Additional District Judge, Basirhat in the year 2007 when the order was passed. Be that as it may.
One thing is coming out from the record that the opposite party/husband is a Government employee and he was attached to the judgeship of North 24-Parganas. The alimony pendente lite awarded by the learned court below at the time of disposal of the application under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act is a negligible and meagre amount. It is very difficult to run two lives at a meagre sum of Rs. 2000/- per head (Rs. 500/-each in a proceeding under Section 125 of Cr.P.C. and Rs. 500/-each in MAT suit) per month. The order impugned calls for interference in it. It is set aside.
3The learned court below is directed to take the application under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act filed by the petitioner/wife in MAT Suit once again and dispose it of in accordance with the provision of law after giving opportunity of hearing to the opposite party/husband within a period of six months from date.
The revisional application is, thus, allowed. Urgent xerox certified copy of this order, if applied for, be given to the parties as expeditiously as possible.
(Asim Kumar Ray, J.)