• Divorce

Sir/Madam- I am 33 year old male. I got married in January 2008. We got separated after 6 months of marriage due to incompatibility. We went through marriage counselling to fix problems, but it never worked. I filed for divorce in September 2009 under the grounds of cruelty, because the girl did not want to sign mutual consent. The case at the family court finally concluded in October 2012, which went to the girl's favour. I appealed at the high court by February 2013.
The appeal at high court never progressed, still waiting for a response. At the same time, the girl and her family started harassing me and my family. They filed a case under section 7 (i) (c) against me and family, saying I took 2 kilos of gold and some money as dowry. They also attached my ancestral home with this petition. 
 Since you know my marriage ended in 2008 (we have no kids with this marriage), i moved on with my life and i feel in love with a girl. I live abroad now. My wife's family got to know about my lover and now they filed a criminal case against me and my lover and our families under section 494 r/w 34, saying that I married another girl while i am legally still married. Though its false that i got married again, now my life has gone for a complete toss. My lover and her parents are dragged into this, my old mother, my siblings. Now all of them are frustrated on me, because cops even went to their house to arrest. 
We have now taken anticipatory bail for all relatives living in India, but our lawyer is not giving ideas as of how to handle this case. I am also frustrated that the matrimonial appeal in high court has not progressed though its been 2 years since i filed. 
Can you please give some legal advise how to get rid of this mess?
Asked 10 years ago in Family Law
Religion: Hindu

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9 Answers

1. As per the facts furnished by you the divorce case filed by you has been dismissed by the court, which order you have challenged in the High Court. Has your wife entered appearance in the HC appeal? If yes, your appeal will be fast tracked after it is placed on the regular board of the High Court for final arguments. Your lawyer should be able to do the needful.

2. How was your ancestral property attached? Did the court pass an order against you which you did not obey? Orders for attachment of ancestral property are not ordinarily passed by the courts. It remains unclear as to under what circumstances the court passed the order for attachment of ancestral property. Depending on the facts and circumstances in the backdrop of which the order for attachment was passed you may challenge the order of attachment to free your property.

3. Since you have taken anticipatory bail in the case of bigamy filed against you it is now imperative that you contest the case on merits by denying all her allegations. I hope you have taken bail for yourself too. Your wife has to prove that you have married another woman before getting divorce from her.

4. The allegations of taking 2 kilos as dowry have to be proved by her through requisite evidence. These cases are filed only to force the husband to part with a heavy amount towards alimony. Contest them fittingly.

5. If your lawyer is not doing his work properly then engage another lawyer.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

1) you have not reproduced order of trial court wherein your divorce petition was dismissed .

2) it is necessary to go through order of dismissal of divorce petition passed by family court to advice .

3) you have stated that you have filed an appeal against order of dismissal of your petition . please note that appeal takes number of years to be disposed of . it woul depend upon pendency of cases in HC

4) since there are hundreds of appeals pending HC wont expedite your final hearing of divorce petition unless grounds for urgency are made out by you .

5)as far as case of bigamy is concerned wife has to prove the allegations made in complaint . she has to prove that you actually remarried during subsistence of your earlier marriage . complaint would be dismissed but it may take some years on account of long pendency of court cases in trial court .

6) as far as orders for attachment of ancestral property are concerned unless you reproduce the grounds on which order has been passed we cant advice you .

7) similarly allegations made by your wife regarding you taking 2 kgs of gold have to be proved by her . these are nothing but intimidatory tactics adopted by your wife to force you to settle as per their terms

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
96860 Answers
7814 Consultations

Hi, ask your lawyer to file early hearing application and matter may come to the board early but there are so many reasons that the matter will not even after years it is better you can discusses the matter and ask him to file a early hearing application.

Pradeep Bharathipura
Advocate, Bangalore
5611 Answers
338 Consultations

1. What is the status of the case in High Court? If you are not satisfied with your current lawyer, you can always change him with another one.

2. If you are Muslim then case of bigamy is not applied to you. If not then second marriage will have to be proved. If it is not proved then nothing will happen.

3. Since you have already taken bail, you have no other reason for concern. Now things are under control/ So concentrate in your job. The cases in india linger as along as the same is not hampering your job just ignore those.

Devajyoti Barman
Advocate, Kolkata
23205 Answers
512 Consultations

1. Did you not collect enough evidence of her cruelty to file the divorce suit which was dismissed in your wife's favour?

2. While challenging the order in High Court what acceptable arguments did you forward? If there is no valid argument, the appael before the High Court also is likely to be rejected,

3. In the High Court, your case should have atleast been listed by now. Ask your lawyer to make a mention for it for early hearing,

4. It is not understood how your ancestral property has been attached with the petition of your wife. Was there any Court order to this effect? Without knowing the full facts, it is not possible to submit any answer to your this point,

5. Your wife shall have to prove with evidence that you have married to another lady without taking divorce from her to prove the charge of bigamy and if she fails, you all can sue her for filing false case against all of you. Contest the case fittingly,

6. As regards the Dowry case filed against you, she has to prove her allegation which you shall have to contest.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly
Advocate, Kolkata
27453 Answers
726 Consultations

Dear Querist

File a quashing petition u/s 482 of Cr.P.C. before High Court against the complaint u/s 494/34 of ipc filed by your wife against you and your lover.

if there is no second marriage then the complaint may be quashed and the High court have power to do that.

as regard the case against you u/s 7(1)(c) of which act............???????

Nadeem Qureshi
Advocate, New Delhi
6307 Answers
302 Consultations

1) as mentioned earlier it is necessary to go through order passed family court dismissing your divorce petition .

2) if you are dissatisfied with your lawyer you can engage another lawyer .

3) chances of Hc quashing your petition under section 482 are bleak .

4) HC would quash the criminal complaint only if allegations made in complaint do not disclose commission of any offence or if settlement has been arrived at between you and your wife .

5) better contest your criminal case on merits before trial court

6) since gift deed had been executed by your parents you are absolute owner of property . trial court has granted stay on apprehension that you may dispose of the property

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
96860 Answers
7814 Consultations

1. If your lawyer had taken his fee for filing the case in the HC he ought to have either filed it or returned the amount in entirety to you. Drafting the case would not have taken more than a week, and filing does not take more than a day.

2. If there is proof of innocence writ large on the face the HC may quash the proceedings.

3. Without perusing the appeal you have filed in the HC we cannot advice on the merits of the case.

4. A lawyer-client relationship is founded on trust. If you have an apprehension that your lawyer has compromised the ethics which rank so high in the scale of the value system of the legal profession then change your lawyer.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

1. The said petition to be filed u/s482 takes hardly a week,

2. Ask your lawyer not to delay any further,

3. It is difficult to get criminal case/FIR quashed unless staunch evidence against the complaint is submitted or vcomplainant fails to produce adequate evidence,

4. File a police complaint against the temple priest who missued the fake marriage certificate regarding your second marriage.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly
Advocate, Kolkata
27453 Answers
726 Consultations

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