Wife's convenience and pendency of cross-proceedings justify transfer of matrimonial suit to her place of residence.

The applicant (wife) and the opponent (husband) are in a matrimonial dispute. The opponent filed Family Suit No. 480 of 2025 for restitution of conjugal rights under Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act in the Family Court, Rajkot

The applicant, residing in Thangadh, District Surendranagar, filed a separate divorce petition which is currently pending as Family Suit No. 10 of 2026 before the Family Court, Chotila

The applicant sought a transfer of the husband’s Rajkot suit to Chotila, citing a lack of means to defend the proceedings in Rajkot and resulting hardship

Despite notice being served on 28.11.2025, the opponent failed to appear or file a reply

1. Whether the Family Suit No. 480 of 2025 filed by the husband in Rajkot should be transferred to the Family Court, Chotila, to be heard alongside the wife’s divorce petition

The Court applied the principles governing the transfer of matrimonial proceedings, emphasizing the convenience of the parties and the prevention of conflicting decisions.

It relied on the precedents of Smita Singh v. Kumar Sanjay [AIR 2002 SC 396] and N.C.V. Aishwarya v. A.S. Saravana Karthik Sha [2022 SCC OnLine SC 1199], which generally favor the wife's convenience in transfer petitions

The court exercised its discretionary power to consolidate proceedings involving common parties and overlapping subject matter under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (specifically Sections 9 and 13) to ensure judicial efficiency

The Court noted that the opponent-husband did not contest the application despite being served notice, leaving the applicant’s averments regarding financial hardship and inconvenience uncontroverted

The Judge reasoned that since the applicant has already instituted a divorce petition (Section 13) in Chotila and the opponent has a restitution suit (Section 9) in Rajkot, it is "desirable" for both matters to be heard by a single court to avoid contradictory findings and facilitate the parties

By transferring the Rajkot suit to Chotila, the Court aimed to mitigate the applicant’s hardship while providing the husband the option to participate via video conferencing to balance the interests of justice

It directed that Family Suit No. 480 of 2025 be transferred from the Family Court, Rajkot, to the Family Court, Chotila. The Court further ordered that the transferred suit and the existing Family Suit No. 10 of 2026 be heard together on common dates. Permission was granted for the opponent to request participation in the proceedings via video conference.