Court refuses unemployed man’s plea for restoration of cohabitation

Surat: A Surat family court refused to order a wife to resume cohabitation with her unemployed husband after the man filed a plea for restitution of conjugal rights under the Hindu Marriage Act.
The 31-year-old man married a 26-year-old woman in 2018 after they fell in love. After two months of marriage, the woman went to her father's home and did not return. After this, the man filed his plea in a Surat court in June 2019. The court turned down the plea after he failed to prove that he earned a living from a job or business.
Ashwin Jogadiya, the woman's lawyer, told TOI: "The man filed a plea under the Hindu Marriage Act for restitution of conjugal rights. When I asked him about his income and sources, he failed to submit it."
Jogadiya said when he cross-examined witnesses, it came to light that the court fees, lawyer's fees and other expenses were paid by the man's father. "His father also paid maintenance to my client from his income. As the court did not see a future for the woman because of the man's joblessness, it refused to grant cohabitation," Jogadiya said.
The family court observed: "As the applicant is jobless and does not have any income, there is no reason for the woman to stay with the applicant. As the applicant pays maintenance to his wife, lawyer's fees and other expenses from his father's pension, he has failed to respect the woman and her rights as a wife. The court thus refuses the plea of the applicant."
The man from Parle Point and met woman, who was from Katargam, when they were preparing for an exam for a govt job. During their relationship, the woman got pregnant. After living with the man for two months, she left his home over marital issues and went back to her father's home. She gave birth to a daughter in Feb 2019, after which she filed a plea in court for maintenance, which was granted by the court.