NEW DELHI: Taking exception to the conduct of an NRI woman, who after agreeing before Supreme Court to settle matrimonial dispute with her ex-husband moved a US court seeking an order to restrain the apex court from proceeding, SC has issued a notice to her to explain why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against her.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and A G Masih said her conduct was highly contemptuous after her ex-husband brought to the court’s notice her plea filed in the American court and that too against SC.
In this case, both the husband and wife had agreed before SC to settle the matrimonial dispute and he had agreed to pay a one-time maintenance of Rs 1 crore to her and her son, who has now become a major. But after returning to the US, she filed a fresh case in a court there for enhancement of maintenance. The husband, thereafter, moved SC through his lawyer Prabhjit Jauhar seeking direction to his ex-wife to withdraw the proceedings filed in the US court. However, she subsequently filed an application before the US court seeking an injunction to restrain SC from proceeding.
“From the perusal of the record, it is clear that after making a statement before this court, wherein the applicant (husband) agreed to settle the matter by paying a one-time maintenance amount of Rs 1 crore to her and her son,” the bench of Justices Gavai and Masih said.
“The applicant (wife) has now initiated proceedings in court of US for further maintenance. Additionally, the applicant has filed an application in court of US seeking an injunction to restrain this court from proceeding further. We find that the conduct of the applicant is highly contemptuous in nature,” the bench added.
It issued a notice to the woman, asking “as to why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against her for committing contempt of this court and why a consequential sentence should not be imposed”. The court passed the order on the petition filed by the husband seeking directions for initiation of contempt proceedings against her.
