Bombay High Court Denies Relief to Remarried Woman During Divorce Appeal
The Bombay High Court has rejected a woman’s interim application to dismiss her husband’s appeal against their divorce decree, as she had remarried during the appeal period.
Legal Complications of Remarriage During Appeal
A division bench of Justices RD Dhanuka and MM Sathaye highlighted the growing trend of litigants trying to manipulate legal provisions to create irreversible situations, rendering ongoing proceedings pointless.
The couple married in 2006 and had one child. The Family Court granted the wife a divorce in 2019 and gave her permanent custody of their child. The husband then appealed this decision in the Bombay High Court, which stayed the Family Court’s order.
Wife’s Plea for Dismissal
The wife sought dismissal of the appeal, stating she had already married a German national, unaware that her husband had filed an appeal. She received the appeal papers three days after her wedding. Her lawyer argued that the couple had lived apart for over 10 years and their marriage was irretrievably broken. Therefore, the stay on the divorce decree should be lifted and the appeal dismissed.
Husband’s Argument Against Dismissal
The husband argued that his wife remarried hastily and applied for their child’s passport to deny him access to his son. The court disallowed her from taking their son abroad and stayed the divorce, noting her conduct. The husband claimed the second marriage could not be legally or socially accepted.
Legal Provisions and Court’s Observation
Section 15 of the Hindu Marriage Act prohibits remarriage while an appeal against the divorce is pending or within a year of the Family Court’s divorce decree. Section 19 allows the aggrieved spouse at least 90 days to file an appeal.
The court expressed surprise at the wife’s boldness in seeking dismissal of the appeal based on her second marriage, which contravened Section 15 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The court refused to dismiss the husband’s appeal at the interim stage.
Case Title:
Akash Kanwarlal Kamal v. Himani Akash Kamal
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