P.Kalaiselvi v. N.Prasanna

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

DATED: 12.01.2022

CORAM

THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE T.RAJA and THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE D.BHARATHA CHAKRAVARTHY C.M.A.No.3467 of 2019 and C.M.P. No.20329 of 2019 P.Kalaiselvi ... Appellant/Respondent vs N.Prasanna ... Respondent/Petitioner Prayer: Civil Miscellaneous Appeal filed under Section 19 of the Family Courts Act, 1984 against the decree and judgment dated 02.08.2019 in I.A. No.180 of 2018 in H.M.O.P. No.20 of 2018 passed by the Family Court, Dharmapuri awarding interim maintenance of Rs.5,000/- to the appellant.

For Appellant :

Mr.D.Baskar For Respondent :

Mr.S.Balasubramaniam

JUDGMENT

[Judgment of this Court was delivered by T.RAJA, J.] This appeal has been brought by the appellant, challenging the correctness of the impugned decree and judgment dated 02.08.2019 passed in I.A. No.180 of 2018 in H.M.O.P. No.20 of 2018 by the Family Court, Dharmapuri, awarding Rs.5,000/- per month as interim maintenance.

2.Learned counsel appearing for the appellant, drawing our notice to the Indian Income Tax Return Verification Form/ Acknowledgment, Indian Income Tax Return/ITR-1 Sahaj Individual Income Tax Return for the Assessment years 2010-11 to 2018-19 TDS/Form 26AS/Annual Tax Statement under Section 203AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961, issued to the respondent for the Assessment years 2011-12 to 2020-21, argued that when the appellant has asked only Rs.30,000/- per month towards monthly maintenance to her and her son, the respondent, deliberately suppressing his job before the Family Court, has stated that

after resigning his job at Sutherland Global Solutions Private Limited, he started working free lancing job for the past three years and earning Rs.20,000/- to Rs.30,000/- per month. Learned counsel appearing for the appellant further submitted that affidavit of assets and liabilities for Non-Agrarian Deponents has been filed by the appellant showing her financial status and details of her assets, income and expenditure before the Judicial Magistrate, Hosur in D.V.C. No.01/2016, whereas, the respondent has not filed the same.

When the order was passed by the Family Court, Dharmapuri, though the respondent has been working in GEBBS Health Care Solutions Private Limited, which could be seen from the TDS and the Income Tax Return filed by the respondent for the relevant assessment years 2018-19, the Family Court, Dharmapuri, accepting the stand taken by the respondent that after resigning his job at Sutherland Global Solutions Private Limited, he started working free lancing job for the past three years and earning Rs.20,000/- to Rs.30,000/- per month, has ordered only a sum of Rs.5,000/- towards interim maintenance to the appellant wife, which is not sufficient to maintain herself and her son.

3.Learned counsel appearing for the respondent submitted that when the appellant wife has approached the Family Court, Dharmapuri seeking interim maintenance, she has not filed the TDS and the Income Tax Returns of the respondent, although those documents were filed before the learned Judicial Magistrate, Hosur, who has been dealing with the D.V.C. No.1 of 2016. Since the above facts would show that the respondent has resigned his job from GEBBS Health Care Solutions Private Limited, it is not fair on the part of the appellant wife to say that the respondent, at no point of time, has resigned his job. Learned counsel appearing for the respondent further submitted that as the appellant is owning agricultural lands to the extent of 1 hectare 91 acres, which could be seen from Ex.R.

3/Copy of patta stands in the name of the appellant and three others, she is not entitled to ask for huge monthly maintenance. 4.The argument made by the learned counsel appearing for the respondent cannot be accepted since the same does not carry any merit and the same is running contra to the documents produced by the appellant.

5.We are able to see that after the marriage was solemnised between the appellant and the respondent on 23.08.2012 at Arulmigu Vadapalani Andavar Temple, Vadapalani, Chennai-26, they were blessed with a male child, by name, P.Mridul, who was born on 18.05.2013 at Vellore. A perusal of

the counter affidavit filed by the respondent in I.A. No.180 of 2018 in H.M.O.P. No.20 of 2018 would show that the respondent was forced to quit his job, whereas, the Indian Income Tax Return Verification Form/Acknowledgment, Indian Income Tax Return/ITR-1 Sahaj Individual Income Tax Return and TDS/Form 26AS/Annual Tax Statement under Section 203AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961, issued to the respondent for the Assessment years 2010-11 to 2018-19 and 2011-12 to 2020-21 respectively, would show that at the relevant point of time, namely, the respondent, while filing his counter affidavit stating that he was forced to quit his job, has been working in GEBBS Health Care Solutions Private Limited. It is relevant to extract the TDS/Form 26AS/Annual Tax Statement under Section 203AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961, issued to the respondent for the Assessment years 2017-18 to 2020-21 as under:

ADIPN6080A Current Status of PAN: Active 2016-17 2017-18

Sr.No. Name of Deductor TAN of Total amount Total tax Total TDS Deductor paid/Credited deducted deposited SUTHERLAND HEALTHCARE SOLUTIONS PRIVATE LIMITED HYDA01772B 536939.00 30229.00 30229.00 31-Aug-2016 F 25-Oct-2016 119293.00 4022.00 4022.00 30-Jun-2016 25-Jul-2016 136665.00 7868.00 7868.00 25-Jul-2016 132110.00 7868.00 7868.00 30-Apr-2016 25-Jul-2016 148871.00 10471.00 10471.00 Sr.No. Name of Deductor TAN of Total amount Total tax Total TDS Deductor paid/Credited deducted deposited 1001861.00 57282.00 57282.00 31-Jan-2017 28-May-2017 163538.00 13641.00 13641.00 31-Dec-2016 F 06-Feb-2017 142357.00 8959.00 8959.00 30-Nov-2016 F 06-Feb-2017 152174.00 8959.00 8959.00 31-Oct-2016 06-Feb-2017 178715.00 13335.00 13335.00 30-Sep-2016 02-Nov-2016 152174.00 1284.00 1284.00 31-Aug-2016 F 02-Nov-2016 212903.00 11104.00 11104.00 ADIPN6080A Current Status of PAN: Active 2017-18 2018-19

Sr.No. Name of TAN of Total amount Total tax Total TDS Deductor Deductor paid/Credited deducted deposited 2135542.00 140460.00 140460.00 31-Mar-2018 18-May-2018 161971.00 15866.00 15866.00 28-Feb-2018 18-May-2018 161971.00 15867.00 15867.00 31-Jan-2018 18-May-2018 230213.00 22895.00 22895.00 31-Dec-2017 F 21-Jan-2018 161971.00 7143.00 7143.00 30-Nov-2017 F 21-Jan-2018 161971.00 7143.00 7143.00 31-Oct-2017 21-Jan-2018 214162.00 18757.00 18757.00 30-Sep-2017 27-Oct-2017 161971.00 7218.00 7218.00 31-Aug-2017 F 27-Oct-2017 161971.00 7219.00 7219.00 31-Jul-2017 27-Oct-2017 206387.00 16083.00 16083.00 30-Jun-2017 24-Jul-2017 208606.00 12746.00 12746.00 24-Jul-2017 152174.00 4755.00 4755.00 30-Apr-2017 24-Jul-2017 152174.00 4768.00 4768.00 ADIPN6080A Current Status of PAN: Active 2018-19 2019-20

Sr.No. Name of TAN of Total amount Total tax Total TDS Deductor Deductor paid/Credited deducted deposited 3212646.00 453515.00 453515.00 31-Mar-2019 15-May-2019 174929.00 16910.00 16910.00 28-Feb-2019 15-May-2019 174929.00 16906.00 16906.00 31-Jan-2019 15-May-2019 257854.00 42780.00 42780.00 31-Dec-2018 F 30-Jan-2019 924929.00 224124.00 224124.00 30-Nov-2018 F 30-Jan-2019 174929.00 8229.00 8229.00 31-Oct-2018 30-Jan-2019 305499.00 48967.00 48967.00 30-Sep-2018 25-Oct-2018 174929.00 8228.00 8228.00 31-Aug-2018 F 25-Oct-2018 174929.00 8229.00 8229.00 31-Jul-2018 25-Oct-2018 264375.00 36137.00 36137.00 30-Jun-2018 02-Aug-2018 174929.00 8229.00 8229.00 02-Aug-2018 235486.00 26744.00 26744.00 30-Apr-2018 02-Aug-2018 174929.00 8032.00 8032.00 ADIPN6080A Current Status of PAN:

Active 2019-20 2020-21

Sr.No. Name of TAN of Total amount Total tax Total TDS Deductor Deductor paid/Credited deducted deposited 692726.00 55202.00 55202.00 30-Jun-2019 08-Aug-2019 195920.00 12715.00 12715.00 08-Aug-2019 217849.00 12715.00 12715.00 30-Apr-2019 08-Aug-2019 278957.00 29772.00 29772.00 6.A perusal of the above would show that the respondent, at no point of time, has resigned his job, which could be seen from the TDS/Form 26AS/Annual Tax Statement under Section 203AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961, issued to the respondent for the Assessment years 2017-18 to 2020-21. Moreover, the Family Court, Dharmapuri, taking note of the fact that copy of patta stands in the name of the appellant and three others, which was marked as Ex.R.3, has held that since the appellant's family is having 1 hectare 91 acres of land (1.91 x 2.47 = 4.7 acres) and if 4.

27 acres are owned by 4 members, each member may get 1.2 acres approximately, it will be sufficient for the appellant to maintain herself. As this Court could not assume or presume as to whether the above lands are dry land or wet land, the findings made by the Family Court, Dharmapuri cannot be acceptable.

7.When the appellant has established her case that the respondent has been working in GEBBS Health Care Solutions Private Limited because his salary has been subjected to the TDS as we have highlighted above, we are unable to support the impugned order passed by the Family Court, Dharmapuri. Since the respondent has suppressed and concealed his job by stating that he quit his job and he has not even filed the affidavit of assets and liabilities before the Family Court, Dharmapuri on the ground that there is no need for filing affidavit of assets and liabilities before the Judicial Magistrate, Hosur, who is dealing with D.V.C. No.1 of 2016 and he has not taken any step

to file the same even before this Court, his denial to pay monthly maintenance to his wife and son is not only unreasonable but also highly unjustifiable. Therefore, we are inclined to direct the respondent to pay the monthly maintenance at the rate of Rs.30,000/- and to pay the arrears of monthly maintenance from July 2018. Accordingly, the respondent is directed to pay Rs.30,000/- towards monthly maintenance on or before 5th of every month and to pay the arrears of monthly maintenance at the rate of Rs.30,000/- before the Family Court, Dharmapuri from July 2018 within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. The Family Court, Dharmapuri is directed to take up the H.M.O.P. No.20 of 2018, after ensuring the full payment of arrears by the respondent as ordered by us and dispose of the same expeditiously.

Therefore, the decree and judgment dated 02.08.2019 passed by the Family Court, Dharmapuri in I.A. No.180 of 2018 in H.M.O.P. No.20 of 2018 are set aside. Accordingly, the appeal stands allowed. No costs. Consequently, C.M.P. No.20329 of 2019 stands closed.

s/d- Assistant Registrar True Copy Sub-Assistant Registrar To 1.The Judge Family Court, Dharmapuri.

Copy to The Section Officer, V.R. Section, High Court, Madras.

+1 CC to Mr.R. Thamaraiselvan, Advocate sr 2672 C.M.A.No.3467 of 2019 and C.M.P. No.20329 of 2019 SSV(CO) SP(19/04/2022)