No Error In Calling For Expert Opinion On Wife's Mental Health At Stage Of Evidence: Allahabad High Court Upholds Trial Court Order
Recently, the Allahabad High Court upheld the order of the Trial Court calling for expert opinion on the wife's mental health at the stage of evidence in divorce proceedings.
Appellant-wife approached the High Court challenging the order of the Principal Judge, Family Court, Hathras allowing respondent-husband's application for her medical examination in divorce proceedings instituted by the husband.
Counsel for the appellant argued that the Trial Court on a similar application had ordered that it would be dealt with at the final stage, however, the examination was being allowed at the stage of evidence in the divorce proceedings. Further objections were raised to the observations made by the Trial Court in its order against the appellant with the apprehension that they may lead to adverse inference during the final disposal of the case.
It was also argued that the CMO should have constituted a proper medical board. To this argument, the Court observed that the report was called from the Aligarh Muslim University which is not a government facility. Accordingly, the Court directed that a medical board be constituted by the Chief Medical Officer, Hathras which should include “qualified Neurologist/s and Psychiatrist/s alongwith such other doctor as may be necessary to make the required assessment.”
The bench comprising Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh and Justice Donadi Ramesh held that the earlier order passed by the Trial Court was an interlocutory order and calling for medical examination at the stage of evidence to reach a conclusion as to the mental health of the wife was rightly done.
“To that extent, the learned trial court has not erred in calling for the medical opinion at the stage of evidence. At present, evidence of the parties is over. Thus, the learned trial court has correctly called for the 'expert opinion' at that stage.”
Accordingly, the appeal filed by the wife was disposed of with a direction that the medical report submitted by the medical board constituted by the CMO Hathras, as stated above, shall be furnished before the Trial Court.
Case Title: Pooja Gautam v. Neeraj Gautam [FIRST APPEAL No. - 803 of 2024]