The Karnataka High Court has recently ruled that a husband and his family cannot retain any items that a woman brings to her matrimonial home, even after the marriage is declared null and void.
This decision came when Justice M. Nagaprasanna was handling a case where a woman initiated criminal proceedings under Section 406 of the IPC against her ex-husband and in-laws.
In this case, the ex-husband and his parents challenged a March 2015 order by the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Bangalore, which dismissed their application seeking discharge from the proceedings started by the woman under Section 406 IPC.
The petitioners argued that they owed nothing to the ex-wife, as Rs 4 lakh was paid to her as part of the divorce settlement, and only the maintenance issue was left unresolved. However, the ex-wife contended that the Rs 4 lakh alimony did not include the Rs 9 lakh given to the petitioners before the marriage. She claimed that the petitioners’ refusal to return her Stridhan amounted to a criminal breach of trust.
The High Court observed that while the annulment was based on the Rs 4 lakh alimony, the Rs 9 lakh given by the woman’s family before the marriage was separate Stridhan. The Rs 4 lakh settlement was only for the annulment, and no judicial body had determined that it included the Rs 9 lakh Stridhan.
Importantly, the court ruled that the annulment of the marriage does not entitle the petitioners to retain the woman’s Stridhan. As a result, the court dismissed the petition filed by the husband and his family.
This ruling underscores the legal protection of a woman’s Stridhan, ensuring that all items brought to the matrimonial home must be returned, regardless of the marriage’s outcome.
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