Maintenance case can be filed where wife resides: HC
Bilaspur Family Court allowed to continue maintenance proceedings
Bilaspur | Correspondent: The Chhattisgarh High Court has delivered a significant ruling regarding jurisdiction in maintenance matters arising from matrimonial disputes. The Court dismissed a revision petition filed by a doctor challenging the jurisdiction of the Bilaspur Family Court. This decision clarifies that the aggrieved party's current place of residence serves as the primary basis for determining the venue for hearings in maintenance cases.
The case involves a doctor and his wife from the Sarangarh-Bilaigarh district. The aggrieved wife, along with her two minor daughters, had filed a petition for maintenance under Section 144 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) in the Bilaspur Family Court.
The woman alleged that she had been subjected to harassment over dowry demands and false allegations regarding her character since the marriage, and was eventually evicted from her matrimonial home along with her children. Lacking an independent source of income, she sought monthly maintenance of ₹1 lakh for herself and ₹20,000 each for her two daughters.
In contrast, the doctor husband objected to the Bilaspur Court's jurisdiction, arguing that the marriage took place in Sarangarh and that his wife's parental home is also located there. He claimed that she was pursuing the case in Bilaspur merely by citing a rented accommodation address, with the sole intention of harassing him.
Citing his physical disability resulting from polio, the husband had sought to have the ongoing legal proceedings in Bilaspur declared invalid.
A bench presided over by Justice B.D. Guru heard the matter and summarily rejected the husband's objections. The High Court found that the wife had submitted concrete evidence of her residence in Bilaspur, including school records of the children and a rent agreement.
The Court clarified that a person's permanent or ancestral address does not affect the jurisdiction of the court where the applicant is currently and actually residing. The court emphasized that rules regarding jurisdiction in maintenance cases are designed to ensure access to justice for dependent wives and children.
According to legal experts, this ruling by the Chhattisgarh High Court will serve as a significant precedent for similar matrimonial disputes in the future. It clarifies that the rights of women and children cannot be suppressed on the grounds of procedural or technical objections, and that they can pursue legal proceedings from their current place of residence, based on their convenience and safety.
