The Supreme Court has observed that marriage contracted during the pendency of appeal from the decree of divorce filed almost a year after expiry of the period of limitation is not void.
The judgement came out in a case titled as Krishnaveni Rai vs. Pankaj Rai & Anr.
CASE BACKGROUND
In the present case, the wife filed a petition u/s 125 for maintenance which was dismissed by the trial court on the ground that the second marriage contracted by the wife is void as it was contracted during the pendency of appeal from the decree of divorceof first marriage. Revision filed against the order was also dismissed by the High Court on the same ground.
Being aggrieved thereby, the appellant(wife) filed an appeal before Supreme Court. The Supreme court referred to Sections 5, 11 and 15 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and observed that :
In any case, the bar of Section 15 is not at all attracted in the facts and circumstances of this case, where the appeal from the decree of divorce had been filed almost a year after expiry of the period of limitation for filing an appeal. Section 15 permits a marriage after dissolution of a marriage if there is no right of appeal against the decree, or even if there is such a right to appeal, the time of appealing has expired without an appeal having been presented, or the appeal has been presented but has been dismissed. In this case no appeal had been presented with the period prescribed by limitation.
The bar, if any, under Section 15 of the Hindu Marriage Act applies only if there is an appeal filed within the period of limitation, and not afterwards upon condonation of delay in filing an appeal unless of course, the decree of divorce is stayed or there is an interim order of Court, restraining the parties or any of them from remarrying during the pendency of the appeal. It could never have been the legislative intent that a marriage validly contracted after the divorce and after expiry of the period of limitation to file an appeal from the decree of divorce should rendered void on the filing of a belated appeal.
Thus Supreme Court allowed the appeal and set aside the order of Trial Court and further directed the husband to pay maintenance.
The judgement has been delivered by Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M.R. Shah on 19-02-2020.
Read Judgement Here:
