JOIN USSC for video conferencing in marriage disputes
If the husband and wife locked in matrimonial disputes live in different cities, courts must consider the “safeguard” of conducting the proceedings through video conferencing, the Supreme Court has said.
A bench of Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel and U U Lalit also directed the use of email and telephone facilities in serving notices to the parties.
The apex court also asked legal aid committees in every district to provide a list of selected advocates to enhance the litigant’s access to justice, since parties travelling from different districts beyond the jurisdiction of a local court may not be aware of the legal services.
Dealing with a plea made by a woman to transfer a divorce plea by her husband from Jabalpur to Hyderabad, the bench noted that a large number of transfer petitions of the present nature are being filed in the apex court and are being mechanically allowed.
“One cannot ignore the problem faced by a husband if proceedings are transferred on account of genuine difficulties faced by the wife. The husband may find it difficult to contest proceedings at a place which is convenient to the wife. Thus, transfer is not always a solution acceptable to both the parties,” the bench said.
Husbands face extreme hardships attending matrimonial cases initiated by their wives in different districts or have problems paying for the wives’ transportation if they had to travel to the courts where the case has been adjudicated.
So the court directed video conferencing to obviate the need to be present in person, even as it ensured the wives are not denied of justice on account of the challenges in their participation in a different court, be it physical or financial.