Delhi High Court asks Omar to participate in maintenance case without delay

New Delhi: Delhi High Court Friday directed former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to participate “without any delay” in the maintenance proceedings involving his estranged wife in a family court here.
Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said Omar should address the arguments in the matter before the family court on December 12 and “would not seek any adjournment and without any delay”.
The court passed the order on Omar’s plea challenging the maintenance proceedings involving his estranged wife Payal Abdullah.
It had earlier reserved its order on Omar’s plea which had claimed that the petition moved by Payal and their two sons seeking maintenance from him, was not maintainable.
Payal’s counsel had vehemently opposed Omar’s plea and said the National Conference leader’s wife has been deserted for over a year and “left to beg to pay the fees” of their two sons.
Omar’s lawyer had argued before the high court that Payal had her own business and a house in the national capital and therefore she has to first establish that she cannot maintain herself to be entitled for the relief.
The lawyer had also contended that their two sons were adults now and therefore, they too cannot seek maintenance.
In his plea, Omar had sought directions to the family court here to first decide the maintainability of Payal’s plea before it decided on the issue of interim maintenance.
He has also challenged the family court’s September 9, 2016 order issuing summons to him in the maintenance case.
The next date of hearing before the family court is December 12, the lawyers had told the high court.
On August 30 last year, a trial court had dismissed Omar’s plea seeking divorce from Payal, saying he had failed to prove irretrievable breakdown of their marriage.
His appeal in the high court against the trial court decision is still pending.