JOIN USA 10-year-old boy has presented a hand-written note to the Supreme Court expressing his joy on settlement of all disputes and litigations between his mother and father.
"This is the rich encomium paid to the court," a bench of Justices Kurian Joseph and Mohan M Shantanagoudar said, closing as many as 23 cases filed by the husband and wife against each other.
In an unusual move, the top court recorded the child's note in its judgement by putting its picture in a short eight-page judgement, dissolving the marriage of the couple.
"The little one present in court is exuberantly happy and sought liberty to present a handmade card expressing his joy on the settlement of all the disputes and litigations between his mother and father," the court said.
The marriage of the couple from Chandigarh was solemnised on May 18, 1997. A girl child was born in 1998 and the boy in 2008.
However, "due to marital discord and temperamental differences", they lived separately since March, 2011. As many as 23 cases were pending before the trial court, High Court, the top court and one before the Consumer Forum.
The bench sought help from Justice Lisa Gill, judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and senior advocate Meenakshi Arora for mediation. Both the husband and wife resolved their differences and sought divorce through mutual consent.
"It is heartening to note that finally, the parties have reached an amicable settlement," the bench said, and ordered giving a quietus to all pending civil and criminal cases.
"We are convinced that the parties have taken a conscious decision, uninfluenced by any extraneous factors," the bench said, after talking to the couple, present in the court.
The court also restrained them from filing any fresh case.