'Warring Couples Can't Make Courts Their Battlefield' : Supreme Court Flags Growing Matrimonial Litigation, Bats For Mediation

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (January 20) expressed concerns over the growing matrimonial litigation and advised that family members should make earnest efforts to resolve disputes before launching of the proceedings.“In the changing times, the matrimonial litigation has increased manifolds. Even this Court is flooded with transfer petitions, mainly filed by the wives, seeking transfer of the proceedings initiated by their husbands, may be at the first instance or as a counter blast. In such situations, it is the duty of all concerned including the family members of the parties to make their earnest effort to resolve the disputes before any civil or criminal proceedings are launched.”, observed a bench of Justices Rajesh Bindal and Manmohan, while dissolving a marriage where couples cohabited barely lasted for 65 days, and had lodged 40 legal cases against each other.The Court suggested a few steps to be taken at first and foremost whenever a matrimonial dispute arises, while criticising the tendency to rush to the police in every matrimonial disagreement: “First and the foremost, earnest effort should be made by the parties and to be guided by the advocates, whensoever consulted in the process, is to convince them for a pre-litigation mediation. Rather in some cases, their counselling may be required. Even if a case is filed in a Court on a trivial issue such as maintenance under Section 144 of BNSS, 2023 (earlier Section 125 of CrPC, 1973) or Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, the first effort required to be made by the Court is to explore mediation instead of calling upon the parties for filing replies as allegations and counter allegations sometimes aggravate the dispute. Even when a complaint is sought to be registered with the police of simple matrimonial dispute, first and the foremost effort has to be for re-conciliation, that too, if possible, through the mediation centers in the Courts, instead of calling the parties to the police stations. This sometimes becomes a point of no return specially when any of the parties is arrested, may it be even for a day.” A judgment authored by Justice Rajesh Bindal made these observations while dissolving a marriage that had been irretrievably broken for over 13 years, during which the couple had initiated more than 40 legal proceedings against each other. The petition in the Supreme Court was filed by the wife seeking transfer of the case registered by the husband. However, in the interregnum the mediation option was explored, but could not taken up. Thereafter, the wife filed an application under Article 142 of the Constitution seeking dissolution of marriage between the parties. The couple had cohabited for barely 65 days after their marriage in 2012 but remained entangled in legal battles for more than a decade. Their disputes spanned divorce petitions, maintenance cases, domestic violence proceedings, criminal cases under Section 498A IPC, execution petitions, perjury applications, writ petitions, and repeated transfer pleas across multiple jurisdictions.Warring couples cannot be allowed to settle their scores by treating Courts as their battlefield and choke the system.Expressing anguish over such entangled litigation wasting the Court's time, the Court suggested exploring the possibility of pre-litigation mediation to resolve such disputes without coming to Courts. “They have indulged into filing more than 40 cases against each other. Warring couples cannot be allowed to settle their scores by treating Courts as their battlefield and choke the system. If there is no compatibility, there are modes available for early resolution of disputes. Process of mediation is the mode which can be explored at the stage of pre-litigation and even after litigation starts. When the parties start litigating against each other, especially on criminal side, the chances of reunion are remote but should not be ruled out.”, the court said. “Practice of law is said to be noble profession. Whenever the parties in matrimonial dispute have differences, the preparation starts as to how to teach lesson to the other side. Evidence is collected and, in some cases, even created, which is more often in the era of artificial intelligence. False allegations are rampant. As any matrimonial dispute has immediate effect on the fabric of the society, it is the duty of all concerned to make earnest effort to resolve the same at the earliest before the parties take strong and rigid stand. There are mediation centres in all districts where pre-litigation mediation is also possible. In fact, it is being explored in number of cases and the success rate is also encouraging. In many cases, the parties, after resolution of their disputes, has also started living together.”, the court added. “we find this to be a case of irretrievable breakdown of marriage, where the parties stayed together only for 65 days, are separated for the last more than a decade...

'Warring Couples Can't Make Courts Their Battlefield' : Supreme Court Flags Growing Matrimonial Litigation, Bats For Mediation

Yash Mittal

Before launching litiation, the parties should make earnest efforts to resolve the disputes, the Court suggested.

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