“The one who has approached the court with unclean hands doesn’t deserve relief,” said the principal judge of the family courts, Dr Laxmi Rao, while rejecting several applications filed by a man against his estranged wife. The court in its verdict maintained that the man had harassed his wife by making frivolous applications instead of proceeding with the trial, and fined him Rs 3,000 for each application.

The case dates back to 2013, when the man filed a divorce petition. The court had asked him to pay a monthly maintenance of Rs 12,000 towards his wife’s expenditure as well as for the upbringing of their child.

The man had recently filed several applications against his wife which included the charge that she had failed to provide their child proper nutritious food. In his applications, he also asked the court to direct his wife to use the entire interim maintenance money which he paid her per month and provide a detailed report of the expenses.

However, the wife in her reply claimed that the man had failed to pay the maintenance amount and still had a pending Rs 96,000 with him. She also stated that he was a BEST worker, hence capable of paying the entire interim relief.

The court examined the child and asked him if he was happy staying with his mother, to which the child replied in the affirmative. He also told the court that his mother gives him ‘Bournvita’ to drink every day.

The court, after going through the evidence, claimed that the husband had not submitted any documents as evidence to prove the allegations against his wife. It then directed him to pay his estranged wife the arrears along with the fine.

http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-family-court-fines-man-for-frivolous-charges-against-estranged-wife-2061291