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2025 DIGILAW 903 (AP)

Penumathsa Indraja, W/o. Srinivasaraju @ Sriraj v. Penumathsa Srinivasa Raju @ Sriraj S/o. P. V. R. Srinivasa Raju

2025-08-04

VENUTHURUMALLI GOPALA KRISHNA RAO

body2025
- ORDER: VENUTHURUMALLI GOPALA KRISHNA RAO, J. The petitioner/wife filed the present petition under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, seeking to withdraw F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District and transfer the same to the Judge, Family Court at Visakhapatnam. 2. The case of the petitioner in brief is as follows: I. The petitioner is the legally wedded wife of the respondent and their marriage has been performed at Visakhapatnam on 29.05.2021, as per Hindu rites and customs. In view of the matrimonial disputes between both the parties, the petitioner/wife along with a male child aged about 3 1/2  years are staying at Siripuram, Visakhapatnam. The petitioner pleaded that she had lodged a complaint before Disha Women Police Station, Visakhapatnam under Sections 498-A and 509 IPC and under Sections 3 & 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act vide Cr.No.324 of 2022 and the same is numbered as C.C.No.4624 of 2022, on the file of the I Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate at Visakhapatnam and the same is pending for adjudication. The petitioner further pleaded that she had filed a Maintenance Case vide M.C.No.74 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court, Visakhapatnam and a Domestic Violence Case vide D.V.C.No.87 of 2023, on the file of the Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Visakhapatnam and the respondent/husband is attending the Court proceedings before the competent Courts at Visakhapatnam. The learned counsel for the petitioner would contend that to cause inconvenience to the petitioner, the respondent/husband filed F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023 on the file of the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District, under Section 13(1)(ia)(ib) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, seeking for dissolution of marriage. II. Learned counsel for the petitioner further contended that the petitioner being a woman having a male child aged about 31/2 years, it is very difficult for her to attend the Court proceedings before the learned Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Vizianagaram District, without any male support and that she was constrained to file the present petition against the respondent/husband seeking to withdraw F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District and transfer the same to the Judge Family Court at Visakhapatnam. 3. 3. Learned counsel for the respondent has represented that there are no grounds to consider the request of the petitioner seeking to transfer the aforesaid case from the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District to the Judge, Family Court at Visakhapatnam and requested to dismiss the present transfer civil miscellaneous petition. - 4. Heard Sri T.D.Phani Kumar, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri P.Padmakar, learned counsel for the respondent. Perused the material available on record. 5. The material on record prima facie goes to show that in view of the matrimonial disputes between both the parties, the petitioner/wife along with a male child aged about 31/2 years are staying at Siripuram, Visakhapatnam and she filed a Criminal Case vide Cr.No.324 of 2022 and the same is numbered as C.C.No.4624 of 2022, on the file of the I Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate at Visakhapatnam and the same is pending for adjudication. Further, the petitioner had filed a Maintenance Case vide M.C.No.74 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court, Visakhapatnam and a Domestic Violence Case vide D.V.C.No.87 of 2023, on the file of the Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Visakhapatnam. The respondent/husband has filed F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District, under Section 13(1)(ia)(ib) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, seeking for dissolution of marriage. 6. The Apex Court in a case of GEETA HEERA Vs HARISH CHANDER HEERA, (2000) 10 SCC 304 held by considering the fact that “if a wife does not have sufficient funds to visit the place where the divorce petition is filed by her husband, then the transfer petition filed by the wife may be allowed.” 7. The Apex Court in a case of N.C.V. Aishwarya Vs A.S.Saravana Karthik Sha, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 627 held as follows; 9. The cardinal principle for exercise of power under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure is that the ends ofjustice should demand the transfer of the suit, appeal or other proceeding. The Apex Court in a case of N.C.V. Aishwarya Vs A.S.Saravana Karthik Sha, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 627 held as follows; 9. The cardinal principle for exercise of power under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure is that the ends ofjustice should demand the transfer of the suit, appeal or other proceeding. In matrimonial matters, wherever Courts are called upon to consider the plea of transfer, the Courts have to take into consideration the economic soundness ofboth the parties, the social strata of the spouses and their behavioural pattern, their standard of life prior to the marriage and subsequent thereto and the circumstances of both the parties in eking out their livelihood and under whose protective umbrella they are seeking their sustenance to life. Given the prevailing socio- economic paradigm in the Indian society, generally, it is the wife’s convenience which must be looked at while considering transfer. ” 8. On considering the submissions made by the learned counsel appearing for both sides and in view of the ratio laid down in the aforesaid case laws that in matrimonial proceedings, the convenience of the wife has to be considered than that of the inconvenience of the husband. Therefore, this Court is of the considered view that there are grounds to consider the request of the petitioner/wife to withdraw F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District and transfer the same to the Judge, Family Court at Visakhapatnam. 9. In the result, the present petition is allowed withdraw F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023, on the file of the Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram Disfrict, is hereby withdrawn and transferred to the Judge Family Court at Visakhapatnam. The Judge, Family Court at Vizianagaram, Viziangaram District, shall transmit the case record in F.C.O.P.No.135 of 2023 to the Judge, Family Court at Visakhapatnam, duly indexed as expeditiously as possible preferably within a period of one (01) week from the date of receipt of a copy of the order. Both the parties are directed to appear before the learned Judge, Family Court at Visakhapatnam on 08.09.2025 at 10.30 a.m. There shall be no order as to costs. - As a sequel, miscellaneous petitions, if any pending and the Interim order granted earlier, if any, shall stand closed.