Amitabha Dutta, J. - (1.) This is a Reference under Section 17 of the Indian Divorce Act for confirmation of the decree nisi passed ex parte by the learned District Judge, Burdwan for dissolution of marriage between the petitioner Mrs. Esther Kiron and respondent Mr. Franklin Promod Kiron in this Divorce Suit.
(2.) The petitioner-wife pleaded for a decree for dissolution of the marriage with the respondent under Section 10 of the Indian Divorce Act alleging in the petition that she was married to the respondent according to Christian rites on 18-2-74 at the Baptist Church at Chitaldanga, P. O. Rupnarayanpur, P. S. Salanpur, District Burdwan within the jurisdiction of the learned District Judge, Burdwan. She further stated that after marriage the petitioner went to live with her husband at Gumia, District Giridih (Bihar) where they lived together till 14-6-75. Soon after her marriage the petitioner came to learn that the respondent had illicit connection with one Nili William of Chelidanga of Asansol and when the petitioner tried to prevent the respondent from having such illicit relationship the respondent began to torture the petitioner for which she had to leave the place of her husband on 15-6-75. Since then she has been living with her father at Chitaldanga. According to the petition, the respondent deserted the petitioner by his conduct by living adulterous life with the said woman for which the petitioner was compelled to leave the matrimonial home. There is no averment in the petition that at the time of presentation thereof the respondent-husband was living within the territorial jurisdiction of the District Judge, Burdwan.
(3.) In view of the averments in the petition we find that the learned District Judge, Burdwan had no jurisdiction to entertain the petition under Section 10 of the Indian Divorce Act which provides that any wife may present the petition to the District Court. The expression "District Court" has been defined in Clause (3) of Section 3 of the Act as follows : "(3) 'District Court' means, in the case of any petition under this Act, the Court of the District Judge within the local limits of whose ordinary jurisdiction or of whose jurisdiction under this Act the husband and wife reside or last resided together.";