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Priyanka Chawla v. Amit Chawla

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal Nos. 101-102 of 2016)Decided 8 Jan 2016
Civil Appeal Nos. 101-102 of 2016
Justice Kurian Joseph · Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman

Background

The appellant-wife and respondent-husband married in 2007, but the marriage broke down and the Family Court, Ghaziabad granted a divorce decree on the ground of cruelty in 2014. On appeal, the Allahabad High Court upheld the divorce but reduced the agreed permanent alimony from Rs. 36.5 lakh to Rs. 29.5 lakh. Both parties, along with the wife's father, appeared in person before the Supreme Court and indicated they wished to reach a complete and peaceful settlement, including of several pending civil and criminal cases between them.

Decision Breakdown

Based on the parties' mutual agreement, the Supreme Court allowed the appeals on settlement terms: the husband would pay the balance alimony (on top of amounts already paid), the Family Court's original divorce decree would be set aside and replaced by a fresh decree of mutual-consent divorce (with the statutory cooling-off period waived in the interest of justice, given the case was already over a decade old), and all related criminal proceedings, including an FIR under Section 498A IPC and other complaints, along with pending domestic violence and maintenance cases, were quashed. The Court commended counsel on both sides for facilitating the amicable resolution.

Lesson Learnt

When estranged spouses reach a genuine, complete settlement, including of related criminal cases, the Supreme Court can use its powers to convert a contested divorce into a mutual-consent divorce, waive the usual cooling-off period, and put a comprehensive end to all connected litigation in one go.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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