BEFORE THE HON’BLE CHIEF JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE, AT BENGALURU

IA No. ____/2025

in

Crl. Misc. No. ______ /2025

BETWEEN:

DEVI
Aged 37 years
W/o Praveen
Residing at 41, 2nd Main Road,
JP Nagar, Bengaluru- 560078 …PETITIONER

AND

PRAVEEN
Aged 42 years
S/o Rakesh
Residing at 2/13, Lakshmi Nivas,
Richmond Town, Bengaluru- 560025 …RESPONDENT

APPLICATION FOR INTERIM CUSTODY OF MINOR CHILD FILED UNDER

SECTION 21 READ WITH SECTION 12 OF THE PROTECTION OF WOMEN
FROM DOMESTIC VIOENCE ACT 2005

For the reasons urged and sworn to in the accompanying affidavit, it is prayed that
this Hon’ble Court be pleased to pass an ad interim relief directing the Respondent
not to interfere with the custody of the Petitioner of her minor child, Sharath aged 7
years, and maintain status quo in respect of the minor child’s custody, and not to
take him out of jurisdiction of this Hon’ble Court, in the interests of justice and
equity.

Place: Bengaluru
Date: 27.3.2025 Advocate for the
Petitioner

BEFORE THE HON’BLE CHIEF JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE, AT BENGALURU

IA No. ____/2025

in

Crl. Misc. No. ______ /2025

BETWEEN:

DEVI …PETITIONER

AND

PRAVEEN …RESPONDENT

AFFIDAVIT

I, Smt. Devi, w/o Praveen, aged about 37 years, residing at 41, 2nd Main Road, JP
Nagar, Bengaluru- 560078, do hereby solemnly affirm and state on oath as under:

1. I state that I am the Petitioner in the present case. I am fully aware of the facts
and circumstances of the case and am competent to swear to this affidavit.

2. The parties are referred to by their ranks in the main petition for the sake of
convenience.

3. The contents of the main petition may be read as forming part and parcel of this
application and are not repeated herein for the sake of brevity.

4. I got married to the Respondent on 19.2.2012 in an arranged marriage according

to Hindu customs and ceremonies in Bengaluru. From the marriage, I have a
minor son, Sharath, aged 7 years, who was born on 17.1.2018. I have always
been a devoted and loving mother who has ensured that her son receives a
nurturing and stable environment for his growth, and he receives the warmth,
love and affection that Sharath needs for his good upbringing. However, from
 the beginning of our marriage, the continued abuse inflicted by the Respondent
has created an unsafe environment for both me and my minor child forcing me
to seek the protection of this Hon’ble Court.

5. I state that from the beginning month of our marriage, the Respondent has
engaged in habitual acts of cruelty and torture. Within a week of our marriage,
the Respondent had forced me to watch pornographic content with him.
Whenever I refused, the Respondent would stop talking to me that stretched for
weeks or sometimes even months that created an atmosphere of hostility and
fear in the house. His habit of watching pornographic films corrupted his mind to
such an extent that he sexually abused me and made sexual relations with me
against my consent on several occasions. The Respondent, even after the birth
of our child, and till date, continue to watch adult content on the television
openly. This not only violates the sanctity of our marriage but is also a terrible
and degrading influence on our minor son. The Respondent did not even care if
our son is in the house and would watch adult content on the television. I have
to ensure that our son did not come before the television and remains away from
such content.

6. I state that in addition to the constant physical, mental and verbal abuse, the
Respondent has also engaged in open adultery. He had several extra-marital
relationships with a foreign woman, named Honey, in Bengaluru, from the year
2014 to mid-2015, and another woman named Chitra in 2021. His acts of
infidelity and being boastful about them in front of me and our son at the house
not only shows blatant disregard for our marriage but is also an immoral
influence on our son.

7. On 25.3.2025, the Respondent exceeded all limits in his acts of violence and
cruelty. During an argument, when I mentioned his past and ongoing adulterous
affairs, he became furious and violent with rage. He threw cutlery and teacups
with hot tea inside it at me that caused me immense physical pain. My son,
Sharath, witnessed this entire outburst and was so terrified and afraid that he
had to run and hide in a corner. He started to cry uncontrollably seeing the
entire incident. The child was deeply traumatized by the violence that happened
 in the house that caused immense emotional distress to him, and he became
fearful of his father.

8. The Respondent’s adulterous life, and his cruel physical, verbal and emotional
abuse on me has created a toxic and hostile environment in the house. This is a
bad influence on the upbringing of the child. Furthermore, the child is at a
serious risk of psychological harm if left in the custody of the Respondent. The
child is of a tender age and needs a stable and nurturing home which only I can
provide.

9. I had left my marital home on 25.3.2025 and am currently living with my parents
in their house. I am terrified that the Respondent might attempt to forcibly take
my minor child away from me, which would further traumatize the child and also
destabilize his emotional and mental well-being.

10. I state that my son, Sharath, has already been subjected to a violent and
unstable home environment due to the Respondent’s adulterous and degrading
behaviour. He requires a secure and peaceful upbringing. Exposure to a father
who has such non-virtuous life and is abusive will cause irreparable damage to
his emotional and mental health. I, being his mother and primary caregiver, is
the only person who can provide him with the love, safety and stability that he
requires.

11. In custody matters, the paramount consideration is the best interests of the
child. Given the history of abuse, violence and lack of moral values in the
Respondent, I state that it is the best interests of the child to remain in my
custody, his mother. Any transfer of custody to the Respondent would cause
insecurity and instability to the child which is against the welfare and best
interests of the child.

12. I state that I have a prima facie case in my favour as the best interests of the
minor child lie with me. The balance of convenience also lies with me as I have
been the primary caregiver of the child and have ensured his overall well-being.
Furthermore, if the custody of the child is given to the Respondent, it will cause
 irreparable harm to him affecting his emotional and psychological stability. On
the other hand, absolutely no harm or injustice would be caused to the
Respondent if the application is allowed.

13. Therefore, I humbly pray that this Hon’ble Court be pleased to allow the
accompanying application as prayed for, in the interest of justice and equity.

I, Devi, the Petitioner in the above case, do hereby verify and state that this is my
name and signature and that the statements made at Paragraphs 1 to 13
hereinabove are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information and
belief.

Place: Bengaluru DEPONENT

Date: 28.3.2025

Identified by me

Advocate