Vishal Shah vs Monalisha Gupta - 2025 INSC 254 - Domestic Violence Act - Passport Impounding - Irretrievable Breakdown Of Marriage - Permanent alimony
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 - There is no requirement for the personal presence of any party in the proceedings under the DV Act, because they are quasi-criminal in nature and do not entail any penal consequences except when there is a breach of a protection order, which is the only offence provided under Section 31 of the DV Act. (Para 21)
Passports Act, 1967 -Section 10(3) - Rules of natural justice must be followed before impounding a passport - (Para 42-56) Referred to Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) 1 SCC 248.[Context: In this case, the appellant-husband's passport was impounded on the mere premise that the respondent-wife has filed numerous cases before the various courts in India- SC held that is act of impounding was ex-facie illegal]
Constitution of India - Article 142 -Court has discretion to dissolve the marriage on the ground of its irretrievable breakdown (Para 24) the factors to be examined inter alia include the period of cohabitation between the parties after marriage; the last cohabitation among the parties; the period of separation; the nature and the gravity of allegations made by the parties against each other and their family members; the orders passed in the legal proceedings from time to time, cumulative impact on the personal relationship; whether, and how many attempts were made to settle the disputes by intervention of the court or through mediation, and such other similar factors. (Para 25)
Permanent Alimony -List of factors to be looked into while deciding the question of permanent alimony: i. Status of the parties, social and financial. ii. Reasonable needs of the wife and the dependent children. iii. Parties’ individual qualifications and employment statuses. iv. Independent income or assets owned by the party. v. Standard of life enjoyed by the wife in the matrimonial home. vi. Any employment sacrifices made for family responsibilities. vii. Reasonable litigation costs for a non-working wife. viii. Financial capacity of the husband, his income, maintenance obligations, and liabilities. (Para 40)