MP HC says divorced woman 'misused' legal process, asks her to pay Rs 1 lakh cost to ex-husband

Indore: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh on a divorced woman while taking a dim view of her move to continue an 'unscrupulous litigation' against her former husband and his elderly parents.

The woman has 'misused the process of the court', Justice Subodh Abhyankar of the HC's single bench in Indore said in the order on March 1.

The cost has been imposed only to caution the unscrupulous litigants that they cannot take the courts for a ride, it said.

The woman, a resident of Indore, received Rs 50 lakh in lieu of a compromise following the divorce through mutual consent in February last year.

But she did not fulfil the undertaking to withdraw the case registered following her complaint at a police station five years ago against her ex-husband and in-laws for cruelty, criminal intimidation and other charges.

The couple got married in 2000 and have a 20-year-old daughter, who has been living with her father after their divorce.

The court, while quashing the case pertaining to charges of dowry harassment, assault and abortion without the woman's consent, has ordered her to pay Rs 1 lakh to her ex-husband.

"The cost of Rs 1 lakh has been so imposed only to caution the unscrupulous litigants that they cannot take the courts for a ride which are meant for serious litigation, and the valuable time of the courts cannot be allowed to be wasted by them in any manner," the HC said, while allowing a petition filed by the woman's ex-husband and in-laws seeking quashing of the case against them.

The court ordered that the woman pay the amount to the man within four weeks by crediting it in his bank account.

The couple got divorced with mutual consent on February 2, 2023, and the man also gave her Rs 50 lakh in lieu of it, the court noted.

"So far as the other offences u/ss. 498A, 323, 506, 34, 325 of IPC are concerned, it is found that omnibus allegations have been made by the complainant and further considering the fact a decree of divorce by mutual consent has already been passed between the parties, the respondent no.2 (woman) was bound to withdraw the same but she deliberately, with ulterior motives refused to withdraw even that part of the charge-sheet," the court noted.

"Thus, the respondent's conduct in continuing with the criminal case against the petitioners, despite entering into a compromise with her former husband and accepting Rs 50 lakh in lieu thereof, clearly amounts to 'misuse of the process of the court'," it said.