Wife Files Divorce Petition

5 years ago

Wife filed petition in the 3rd week of March 2018 for divorce on grounds of cruelty after 24 and a half years of marriage in a family court in Delhi.
Husband is 59 years old and wife 55. Husband has been summoned by the Principal Judge, Family Court. Since husband is totally broke, he has not been able to hire the services of any advocate. He is not conversant with the process of law and will be presenting himself before the Principal Judge tomorrow.

Husband has not been in employment for over past 20 years and is a freelancer/independent consultant in the area of professional copy writing and editing. He also set up a sole proprietorship consulting company in January 1997 and ran it till 2002 but the venture turned out to be loss making, which he closed in the year 2002. He has been freelancing ever since but in 2012 he lost his major client due to change in top management in the client organisation. Another of client, not been doing well for many years, finally shut shop towards the end of April 2018. There have been no work opportunities for past many years. As a result, husband has become broke and has zero savings. He owns no movable and immovable assets. Husband has been living with his wife in a government flat allotted to wife who is class 1 officer in the Government of India.

The couple has two daughters. The elder one is an engineer and is employed with a US consulting firm.The younger one is pursuing master’s degree. Both daughters are a metro city in south India and not living with parents at present.
Wife has left the flat on 15th of April, 2018 and handed over Rs. 5000 to husband for food etc. She refused to reveal the address where she was moving to. On the husband in-laws side, there is a mother in law and an unmarried sister in law who had been living in the barsati of the government flat allotted to wife, the petitioner. Wife along with her mother and sister shifted to an undisclosed location on the 15th of April, 2018. Wife is not taking calls from the husband. Husband has no money left with him and is having hard time arranging for two square meals.

Husband has not prepared any written reply to the petition. Please advice what the husband should say before the Principal Judge Family Court in the hearing at 10 am tomorrow.