Madras High Court: In a case of marital discord and petitioner-wife, a practicing advocate was seeking removal of respondent-husband from the matrimonial home, R N Manjula, J. granted protection order and directed the husband to move out of the matrimonial home in the best interest and welfare of the children and to ensure peaceful possession and enjoyment of the petitioner wife in the home in any manner.
The petitioner wife filed an Original Petition for dissolution of marriage against the respondent-husband. During the pendency of matrimonial proceedings, the wife filed an interim application seeking mandatory injunction directing the respondent to move out of the matrimonial home in the best interest and welfare of the children till the disposal of the Original Petition which was partly allowed by the Family Court directing the respondent to not disturb the peaceful possession and enjoyment of the petitioner in the matrimonial home in any manner whatsoever where the petitioner living along with her children, till the disposal of the main petition. Assailing this, the revision petitioner preferred the instant Civil Revision Petition.
The Court noted that instead of giving a supportive hand to the petitioner by being accommodative of her demanding profession, the respondent developed a complaining attitude and found fault with the respondent for being engaged with her work.
Placing reliance on Samir Vidyasagar Bhardwaj v. Nandita Samir Bhardwaj, (2017) 14 SCC 583, the Court noted that if the removal of the husband from home alone is the only way to ensure domestic peace, the courts need to pass such orders irrespective of the fact whether the respondent has or has not another accommodation of his own. If the husband has got alternate accommodation, it is fine that he can be asked to accommodate himself in those alternate premises. If he does not have any other accommodation, it is up to him to secure alternate accommodation.
On the impugned order passed by the Family Court, the Court remarked that “Allowing the respondent to be at the same home but directing him that he should not disturb the other inmates of the home is something impractical. A relief for a person who fears about an impending atom bomb, would be just to remove the bomb from his/her vicinity.”
Thus, the Court observed that when a couple lives under one roof, the conduct of one party to the other is always vital in defining the respect and recognition the family would get from others. If domestic peace is disturbed due to unruly acts of one party, namely the husband, there need not be any hesitation in giving the practical enforcement for the protection order by removing the husband from the house.
The Court modified the impugned order passed by the Family Court and directed the respondent-husband to leave the house where the petitioner and the children live and find alternate accommodation within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of the order, failing which, the respondent shall be removed from the matrimonial home with the help of police protection.
[V Anusha v. B Krishnan, CRP (PD) No. 1824 of 2022, decided on 11-08-2022]
Advocates who appeared in this case :
S. P. Arthi, Advocate, for the Petitioner;
D. Suresh Kumar, Advocate, for the Respondent.
*Arunima Bose, Editorial Assistant has reported this brief.
