TA No.583 of 2011 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH TA No.583 of 2011 Date of decision : 22.11.2011 Baljeet Kaur alias Usha ...Applicant Versus Gursewak Singh ...Respondent CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE JITENDRA CHAUHAN Present: Ms. Satwant Mehta, Advocate for the applicant. Respondent ex parte. JITENDRA CHAUHAN, J. (Oral) 1. The present application has been preferred by the applicant- wife, under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure, praying for the transfer of the petition titled as ‘Gursewak Singh Vs. Usha alias Baljeet Kaur’, filed by the respondent under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (for short `the Act'), from the Court of learned Additional District Judge, Bathinda, to the Court of competent jurisdiction at Tarn Taran. 2. Learned counsel for the applicant contends that after having been ousted from the matrimonial home, the applicant has been residing at the mercy of her mother at Tarn Taran for the last 5 to 6 years, along with two minor children. It is averred that the purpose of TA No.583 of 2011 2 filing the petition under Section 13 of the Act at Bathinda, is only to harass the applicant. 3. Notice in this application through Registered A.D. was sent to the respondent by the applicant at the address given by him in the divorce petition but the same has been received back unserved with the report that no such person is residing at the given address. The counsel states that as the proceedings before the trial Court were stayed by this Court, the respondent is in the knowledge of this transfer application. In the circumstances, the service is deemed to be effected and the respondent is proceeded against ex parte. 4. I have heard the learned counsel for the applicant and perused the record. 5. Hon'ble the Supreme Court in Neelam Kanwar vs Devinder Singh Kanwar, 2001(1) M.L.J. 509 (SC), has observed as under:- “…we are mindful of the fact that the petitioner is a lady and first respondent is a male, and, therefore, convenience- wise, a transfer to the place where the lady is residing, would be preferred by this Court unless it is shown that there are special reasons not to do so. No such special reason is shown.” 6. Smt. Baljeet Kaur, the applicant-wife, is residing at Tarn Taran. The respondent-husband filed a petition under Section 13 of the Act, which is pending before learned Additional District Judge, Bathinda. It would certainly be difficult for the wife, living at the TA No.583 of 2011 3 mercy of her old mother, having no resources and saddled with the responsibility of raising her two minor children, to attend the court proceedings at Bathinda. 7. Considering the fact that the applicant is a resident of Tarn Taran and in a petition filed by the husband against his wife, primarily the convenience of the wife is to be seen. Therefore, in my opinion, the balance of convenience is in favour of the applicant-wife and against the respondent. 8. In view of the above, the instant transfer application is allowed and the petition under Section 13 of the Act titled as ‘Gursewak Singh Vs. Usha alias Baljeet Kaur’ is withdrawn from the Court of learned Additional District Judge, Bathinda, and is transferred to the Court of competent jurisdiction at Tarn Taran. The entire record pertaining to the petition under Section 13 of the Act shall be sent by the trial Court at Bathinda to the Incharge Additional District Judge, Tarn Taran, within three weeks, who will either himself dispose it of or entrust it to any other Court of competent jurisdiction at Tarn Taran. 9. The parties shall appear before the learned District Judge, Tarn Taran, on 22.12.2012. 22.11.2011 (JITENDRA CHAUHAN) atulsethi JUDGE Note : Whether to be referred to Reporter ? Yes / No