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TMI Blog2013 (10) TMI 1409X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... .C by considering the application of destitute wife or hapless children or parents, the Court is dealing with the marginalized sections of the society. The purpose is to achieve social justice , enshrined in the Preamble of the Constitution of India. Preamble to the Constitution of India states that India has chosen the democratic path under rule of law to achieve the goal of securing for all its citizens, justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. It specifically highlights achieving their social justice. The decision of Capt.Ramesh Chander Kaushal vs. Veena Kaushal (1978) 4 SCC 70 For this reason, Court was not inclined to grant leave and dismiss this petition - Criminal Miscellaneous Petition No. 19530/2013, Special Leave Petition (Crl. ) No. 8596/2013 - - - Dated:- 18-10-2013 - Ranjana Prakash Desai And A. K. Sikri, JJ. JUDGMENT A. K. Sikri, J. 1. There is a delay of 63 days in filing the present Special Leave Petition and further delay of 11 days in refilling Special Leave Petition. For the reasons contained in the application for condonation of delay, the delay in filing and refilling of SLP is condoned. 2. The petitioner seeks leave to appeal again ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pondents claimed maintenance for themselves. 4. The petitioner contested the petition by filing his written statement. He dined his relation with respondent Nos.1 and 2 as his wife and daughter respectively. He alleged that he never entered with any matrimonial alliance with respondent No.1 on 10.2.2005, as claimed by respondent No.1 and in fact respondent No.1, who was in the habit of leveling false allegation, was trying to blackmail him. He also denied co-habitation with respondent No.1 and claimed that he was not the father of respondent No.2 either. According to the petitioner, he had married Shobha on 17.2.1979 and from that marriage he had two children viz. one daughter aged 20 years and one son aged 17 years and Shobha had been residing with him ever since their marriage. Therefore, respondent No.1 was not and could not be his wife during the subsistence of his first marriage and she had filed a false petition claiming her relationship with him. 5. Evidence was led by both the parties and after hearing the arguments the learned JMFC negatived the defence of the petitioner. In his judgment, the JMFC formulated four points and gave his answer thereto as under: ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... married to Shobha and was having two children out of the wedlock. However, at the time of solemnizing the marriage with respondent No.1, the petitioner intentionally suppressed this fact from her and co-habited with respondent No.1 as his wife. 8. The aforesaid facts emerging on record would reveal that at the time when the petitioner married the respondent No.1, he had living wife and the said marriage was still subsisting. Therefore, under the provisions of Hindu Marriage Act, the petitioner could not have married second time. At the same time, it has also come on record that the petitioner duped respondent No.1 by not revealing the fact of his first marriage and pretending that he was single. After this marriage both lived together and respondent No.2 was also born from this wedlock. In such circumstances, whether respondents could filed application under Section 125 of the Cr.P.C., is the issue. We would like to pin point that in so far as respondent No.2 is concerned, who is proved to be the daughter of the petitioner, in no case he can shun the liability and obligation to pay maintenance to her. The learned counsel ventured to dispute the legal obligation qua respondent No ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cedure was followed then it is not necessary to further probe into whether the said procedure was complete as per the Hindu Rites in the proceedings under S.125,Cr.P.C. From the evidence which is led if the Magistrate is prima facie satisfied with regard to the performance of marriage in proceedings under S.125, Cr.P.C. which are of summary nature strict proof of performance of essential rites is not required. It is further held: It is to be remembered that the order passed in an application under section 125 Cr.P.C. does not finally determine the rights and obligations of the parties and the said section is enacted with a view to provide summary remedy for providing maintenance to a wife, children and parents. For the purpose of getting his rights determined, the appellant has also filed Civil Suit which is spending before the trial court. In such a situation, this Court in S.Sethurathinam Pillai vs. Barbara alias Dolly Sethurathinam, (1971) 3 SCC 923, observed that maintenance under section 488, Cr.P.C. 1898 (similar to Section 125, Cr.P.C.) cannot be denied where there was some evidence on which conclusion for grant of maintenance could be reached. It was held that o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Cr.P.C.? 14. On this basis, it was pleaded before us that this matter be also tagged along with the aforesaid case. However, in the facts of the present case, we do not deem it proper to do so as we find that the view taken by the courts below is perfectly justified. We are dealing with a situation where the marriage between the parties has been proved. However, the petitioner was already married. But he duped the respondent by suppressing the factum of alleged first marriage. On these facts, in our opinion, he cannot be permitted to deny the benefit of maintenance to the respondent, taking advantage of his own wrong. Our reasons for this course of action are stated hereinafter. 15. Firstly, in Chanmuniya case, the parties had been living together for a long time and on that basis question arose as to whether there would be a presumption of marriage between the two because of the said reason, thus, giving rise to claim of maintenance under Section 125,Cr.P.C. by interpreting the term wife widely. The Court has impressed that if man and woman have been living together for a long time even without a valid marriage, as in that case, term of valid marriage entitling such a w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , liberty, equality and fraternity. It specifically highlights achieving their social justice. Therefore, it becomes the bounden duty of the Courts to advance the cause of the social justice. While giving interpretation to a particular provision, the Court is supposed to bridge the gap between the law and society. 18. Of late, in this very direction, it is emphasized that the Courts have to adopt different approaches in social justice adjudication , which is also known as social context adjudication as mere adversarial approach may not be very appropriate. There are number of social justice legislations giving special protection and benefits to vulnerable groups in the society. Prof. Madhava Menon describes it eloquently: It is, therefore, respectfully submitted that social context judging is essentially the application of equality jurisprudence as evolved by Parliament and the Supreme Court in myriad situations presented before courts where unequal parties are pitted in adversarial proceedings and where courts are called upon to dispense equal justice. Apart from the socialeconomic inequalities accentuating the disabilities of the poor in an unequal fight, the adver ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cess is, indeed, that at times, but it is often something more. The ascertainment of intention may be the least of a judge s troubles in ascribing meaning to a stature. Says Gray in his lecture From the Book The Nature and Sources of the Law by John Chipman Gray The fact is that the difficulties of so-called interpretation arise when the legislature has had no meaning at all; when the question which is raised on the statute never occurred to it; when what the judges have to do is, not to determine that the legislature did mean on a point which was present to its mind, but to guess what is would have intended on a point not present to its mind, if the point had been present. 22. The Court as the interpreter of law is supposed to supply omissions, correct uncertainties, and harmonize results with justice through a method of free decision- libre recherch sceintifique i.e. free Scientific research . We are of the opinion that there is a non-rebuttable presumption that the Legislature while making a provision like Section 125 Cr.P.C., to fulfill its Constitutional duty in good faith, had always intended to give relief to the woman becoming wife under such circ ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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