A division bench of Kerala High Court held that since the wife contracted a second marriage, the issue of permanent alimony requires fresh adjudication. Phew… 20 Lakhs is a big amount. Hopefully saved.

From Para 11,

11. On the issue of award of permanent alimony of Rs.20,00,000/- to be respondent, we find, as rightly pointed out by the learned counsel for the appellant, that the finding of the court below was rendered in the absence of any evidence adduced on behalf of the appellant. While under normal circumstance, this Court would have been loathe to accept the request of the appellant for a remand of this issue to the court below for fresh adjudication, we find that, in the light of the changed circumstances where the respondent has contracted a second marriage during the pendency of this appeal, the issue of entitlement of the respondent to permanent alimony and the quantification thereof, would have to be necessarily gone into by the court below as and when an application under Section 25(3) of the Hindu Marriage Act is preferred before it by the appellant. That being the case, we deem it appropriate to set aside the judgment and decree of the court below, to the extent it awards permanent alimony of Rs.20,00,000/- to the respondent, and remit the matter to the court below for a fresh adjudication on the said issue after affording the parties an opportunity to lead evidence before it. While doing so, we would also request the Court below to complete the fresh adjudication on this issue within two months from the date of receipt of a copy of the judgment.

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Other Sources:

Index of Divorce Judgements is here.