THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE V. GOPALA KRISHNA RAO TRANSFER CIVIL MISCELLANEOUS PETITION No.432 of 2024 ORDER: The petitioner/wife herein filed the present petition under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (for short, „the C.P.C.‟), seeking transfer of H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, on the file of the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, to the file of learned Judge, Family Court, Visakhapatnam for trial and disposal. 2. The case of the petitioner in brief is as follows: i. The petitioner is the legally wedded wife of the respondent/husband, and their marriage was solemnized on 19.02.2016 at Varadaraju Swamy Devasthanam, Buttujangapalli Village, Gangadhar Nellore Mandal, Chittoor District, in the presence of elders and well wishers, as per Hindu rites and customs. Thereafter, due to matrimonial disputes between the parties, the petitioner/wife has been residing separately in her mother‟s house at Visakhapatnam along with two female children aged about eight years and five years respectively. The petitioner pleaded that she filed M.C./CFR No.15437 of 2024, on the file of learned Judge, Family Court, Visakhapatnam and also a domestic violence case and the same are pending for adjudication. 2 ii. The petitioner/wife further pleaded that, with a view to cause inconvenience to her, the respondent/husband filed a divorce petition vide H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, on the file of the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, under Section 13(1)(ib) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, for dissolution of marriage, and the same is also pending for adjudication. 3. Learned counsel for the petitioner would contend that the petitioner, being a woman, has been residing at her mother‟s house at Visakhapatnam along with her two female children and depending upon the mercy of her mother and the children are prosecuting their studies at Visakhapatnam. He would further contend that the distance between Visakhapatnam and Chittoor is approximately 850 Kms and it is very difficult for her to travel to attend the case proceedings filed by the respondent/husband before the Court at Chittoor without any male assistance, and that she was constrained to file the present petition against the respondent/husband, seeking withdrawal of H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, on the file of the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, and transfer the same to the file of the learned Judge, Family Court, Visakhapatnam, for trial and disposal of the same. 4. Learned counsel for the respondent would contend that there are no merits in the transfer petition filed by the petitioner and that the petition may be dismissed. Learned counsel for the respondent would further 3 contend that, in case, if this Court is inclined to transfer H.M.O.P. No.172 of 2024 to the file of the learned Judge, Family Court, Visakhapatnam, a direction may be given to the petitioner herein to pay the travelling expenses of the husband/respondent, or the personal appearance of the respondent/husband may be dispensed with before the transferee Court. 5. Heard learned counsel appearing on both sides. 6. Perused the material available on record. 7. The material on record prima facie goes to show that, due to the matrimonial disputes between both parties, the petitioner/wife has been residing in her mother‟s house at Visakhapatnam along with two female children aged about eight and five years respectively. The material on record further reveals that the respondent/husband has instituted a petition against the petitioner/wife herein vide H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, on the file of the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, seeking dissolution of marriage, and the same is also pending for adjudication. The material on record further reveals that a maintenance case and a Domestic Violence Case filed by the petitioner are pending before the competent Courts at Visakhapatnam. 8. The Apex Court in a case of GEETA HEERA Vs HARISH CHANDER HEERA1, held by considering the fact that “if a wife does not have sufficient funds to visit the place where the divorce petition is filed by her husband, then the transfer petition filed by the wife may be allowed.” 1(2000) 10 SCC 304 4 9. The Apex Court in a case of N.C.V. Aishwarya Vs A.S.Saravana Karthik Sha2 held as follows: “9. The cardinal principle for exercise of power under Section 24 of the Code of Civil Procedure is that the ends of justice should demand the transfer of the suit, appeal or other proceeding. In matrimonial matters, wherever Courts are called upon to consider the plea of transfer, the Courts have to take into consideration the economic soundness of both the parties, the social strata of the spouses and their behavioural pattern, their standard of life prior to the marriage and subsequent thereto and the circumstances of both the parties in eking out their livelihood and under whose protective umbrella they are seeking their sustenance to life. Given the prevailing socio- economic paradigm in the Indian society, generally, it is the wife’s convenience which must be looked at while considering transfer.” 10. On considering the submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioner and in view of the ratio laid down in the aforesaid case laws and on considering the facts and circumstances of the present case that in matrimonial proceedings, the convenience of the wife has to be taken into consideration rather than the inconvenience of the husband, and since a maintenance case and a Domestic Violence Case filed by the petitioner are pending before the competent Courts at Visakhapatnam, I am of the considered view that there are justifiable grounds to consider the request made by the petitioner/wife seeking transfer of H.M.O.P. No.172 of 2024, on the file of the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, to the file 2 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 627 5 of the Additional Family Court, Visakhapatnam. Further, on considering the submissions made by the learned counsel for the respondent, it is desirable to dispense with the personal appearance of the respondent/husband herein, i.e., the petitioner in H.M.O.P. No.172 of 2024, on the file of the learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Nellore, before the transferee Court, except on the days when his personal appearance is required before the said Court as per law. 11. In the result, the Transfer Civil Miscellaneous Petition is allowed and the H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, on the file of learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, is hereby withdrawn and transferred to the file of the learned Additional Family Court Judge, Visakhapatnam. The learned Civil Judge (Senior Division), Chittoor, shall transmit the case record in H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, to the file of the learned Additional Family Court Judge, Visakhapatnam, duly indexed as expeditiously as possible preferably within a period of one (01) week, from the date of receipt of a copy of the order. Both the parties are directed to appear before the learned Additional Family Court Judge, Visakhapatnam on 02.04.2026 at 10.30 am. The transferee Court i.e., the learned Additional Family Court Judge, Visakhapatnam, is hereby directed not to insist for the personal appearance of the respondent herein i.e., the petitioner in H.M.O.P.No.172 of 2024, as long as his counsel on record is attending the Court proceedings and representing the case except on the day when re-conciliation proceedings are being taken up or on the day when his 6 cross-examination is required to be recorded or on any other day when his personal appearance is required as directed by the learned Additional Family Court Judge, Visakhapatnam. There shall be no order as to costs. As a sequel, miscellaneous petitions, if any pending and the Interim order granted earlier, if any, shall stand closed. _______________________________ JUSTICE V. GOPALA KRISHNA RAO Date: 20.02.2026 MH 7 THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE V. GOPALA KRISHNA RAO 30 TRANSFER CIVIL MISCELLANEOUS PETITION No.432 of 2024 Date: 20.02.2026 MH