Supreme Court issues notice to NRI woman for filing case in US despite agreeing to settlement in India
The Supreme Court of India has taken serious exception to the conduct of an NRI woman who, after agreeing to settle a matrimonial dispute before the apex court, approached a US court seeking an injunction to restrain the Supreme Court from proceeding further in the case, reported timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
SC calls woman’s actions ‘highly contemptuous’ for attempting to block Indian legal proceedings via foreign court
A bench comprising Justices B R Gavai and A G Masih issued a notice to the woman, seeking an explanation as to why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against her for attempting to interfere with the authority of the Supreme Court.
The matter stems from a matrimonial dispute in which both parties had earlier agreed, before the Supreme Court, to resolve the matter through a one-time maintenance payment of ₹1 crore to the woman and her now-major son. Following this agreement, the woman returned to the United States but later filed a new petition in a US court seeking enhanced maintenance.
Subsequently, the ex-husband approached the Supreme Court through his counsel, Prabhjit Jauhar, requesting that his ex-wife be directed to withdraw the proceedings filed in the US. In a further twist, the woman then filed an application in the US court seeking an injunction to restrain the Indian Supreme Court from continuing with the matter.
The bench observed, “It is clear that after making a statement before this court, wherein the applicant (husband) agreed to settle the matter by paying a one-time maintenance amount of ₹1 crore… the applicant (wife) has now initiated proceedings in a US court for further maintenance. Additionally, the applicant has filed an application seeking an injunction to restrain this court from proceeding further.”
Calling her conduct “highly contemptuous”, the court issued a formal notice asking the woman to explain why contempt proceedings and consequential penal action should not be taken against her.
