Supreme Court stops couple after they file 67 cases against each other

The cases range from domestic violence to contempt of court.

An estranged couple from Bengaluru, India, filed 67 cases against each other during their seven-year court battle. With the staggering number of cases filed against each other, the Supreme Court of India has now restrained them from filing any new case.   
The court noted that the couple must be prohibited from instituting new cases to prevent precipitating the dispute between them any further. 
The man is a software engineer holding a US citizenship and has filed 58 cases against his estranged wife. On the other hand, the wife, now living in Bengaluru, has filed nine cases against him. The cases range from domestic violence to contempt of court. The duo got married in 2002 and went to the US and their son was born in 2009. However after the marital discord, the woman, an MBA, came back to Bengaluru to her parental home. 
"We restrain both from instituting any fresh litigation in relation to the pending disputes, be it criminal or civil against each other or the members of their family or against the school where the child is now studying, or advocates on either side, without express permission from the High Court," said a bench headed by Justice Kurian Joseph. 
The court also expressed 'pain' that 'torn between them is a helpless child of 9 years, who is mentally and emotionally traumatised'. The bench also ordered the duo to refrain from visiting their child's school after observing that they have often proved to be a nuisance for the school authorities and a cause of embarrassment and agony for the child. Therefore, the bench gave authority to the school principal to stop parents from meeting the boy in the precincts of the institution. 
"We also restrain both the parents from unnecessarily communicating with the school," ordered the bench, while asking the principal to keep them informed only about the events when their attendance will be required.
The Supreme Court also directed courts in Bengaluru to decide within six months their petitions for divorce, custody of the child and all other cases pending between them. Till then, the bench clarified no new case will be filed against each other or in connection with the child, according to reports in News18.
 

• India