Rakhi Vs Chetan & Ors. — Contempt of Court | Delhi HC (2025)

Rakhi Vs Chetan & Ors. — Contempt of Court | Delhi HC (2025)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Withdrawal of the contempt petition permitted with liberty to approach this Court afresh as and when required; consensual visitation arrangement recorded and made binding till pendency of disputes — weekly meetings of the petitioner with the minor child on either Saturday or Sunday for a minimum of two hours inside V3S Mall, Nirman Vihar, Delhi-110 092 (venue/timings mutually fixed at least a day in advance), plus video calls per paragraph 9 of the Division Bench order dated 12.12.2024; the orders dated 12.12.2024 and 08.09.2025 modified to that extent.

Issue for consideration

Whether contempt proceedings should be initiated against the respondents for their alleged wilful and deliberate disobedience of the directions issued by the Hon'ble Division Bench of this Court vide order dated 12.12.2024 in W.P.(CRL) 3618/2024 governing the petitioner/wife's meetings with the minor child.

Court's answer

With the consent of both parties present in person, the respondent no.1/husband is directed to arrange for the petitioner to meet the minor child on either Saturday or Sunday of every week, for a minimum of two hours on each visit, inside V3S Mall, Nirman Vihar, Delhi-110 092, after mutually discussing the exact venue and timings with the petitioner at least a day in advance.

Ratio / Principle

Both parties agreeing in accordance with paragraph no.9 of the Division Bench order dated 12.12.2024, the respondent no.1/husband shall make the minor child talk on a video call with the petitioner/wife.

Key takeaways

The terms set out in the earlier orders dated 12.12.2024 (Hon'ble Division Bench of this Court) and dated 08.09.2025 (Judicial Magistrate First Class (Mahila Court)-01, South East District, Saket Courts, New Delhi) are modified to the aforesaid extent.ratio¶8
Since the consensual visitation terms were settled, learned counsel for the petitioner sought and obtained permission to withdraw the present contempt petition with liberty to approach this Court afresh if and as and when required; the withdrawal was heard and allowed in those terms.ratio¶9

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Contempt petition (CONT.CAS(C) 1398/2025, with CM APPL. 58227/2025-Exp) before the High Court of Delhi (Saurabh Banerjee, J., 23.09.2025): petitioner-wife Rakhi sought initiation of contempt proceedings against respondent-husband Chetan & Ors. for alleged wilful and deliberate disobedience of the Hon'ble Division Bench order dated 12.12.2024 in W.P.(CRL) 3618/2024, under which the ~3-year-old child was to be produced at the Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre every working Saturday (11:00 A.M.-1:00 P.M.) and on the preceding Friday of every non-working Saturday (3:00-5:00 P.M.) for meetings with the mother; she alleged non-compliance for the preceding few months. Respondents placed on record the JMFC (Mahila Court)-01, Saket Courts order dated 08.09.2025 in CT/42152/2024 (extending interim orders of 20.12.2024 and 01.02.2025) granting two-hour Sunday-afternoon meetings. With both parties consenting in person, the Court directed weekly meetings on either Saturday or Sunday of at least two hours inside V3S Mall, Nirman Vihar, Delhi-110 092, with venue and timings mutually fixed at least a day in advance, and weekly video calls by the child with the petitioner per paragraph 9 of the 12.12.2024 order; the 12.12.2024 and 08.09.2025 orders stand modified to that extent. The petition was permitted to be withdrawn with liberty to approach the Court afresh, and the parties are bound by the consensual terms till pendency of the disputes or any subsequent modification.

$~67

* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

- CONT.CAS(C) 1398/2025, CM APPL. 58227/2025-Exp

RAKHI .....Petitioner

Through: Ms. Gunjan Sinha Jain, Advocate with petitioner in person

versus

CHETAN & ORS. .....Respondents Through: Mr. Ritik Sharma, Mr. Himanshu, Mr. Ghanshyam Dass Sharma, Advocates with respondent no.1 in person

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SAURABH BANERJEE

O R D E R % 23.09.2025

By virtue of the present petition, the petitioner seeks initiation of contempt proceedings against the respondents for their wilful and deliberate disobedience of the directions issued by the Hon’ble Division Bench of this Court vide order dated 12.12.2024 passed in W.P.(CRL) 3618/2024, specifically paragraph nos.6 and 7 thereof.

It is the case of learned counsel for the petitioner that vide the said order the respondent no.1/ husband was directed that the minor child aged around 3 years was to be produced in the Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre every working Saturday from 11:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M., and the preceding Friday of every non-working Saturday from 3:00 P.M. to 5:00 P.M. by the respondent no.1/ husband, for meeting the petitioner/ wife. She submits that though the respondent no.1/ husband, was initially complying with the said directions, however, since the last

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few months, due to non-compliance by him, the petitioner/ wife has been unable to meet the minor child.

Issue notice.

Learned counsel for the respondents appearing alongwith the respondent no.1/ husband in person accepts notice. He has handed over a copy of the order dated 08.09.2025 passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class (Mahila Court)-01, South East District, Saket Courts, New Delhi in CT/42152/2024 whereby certain fresh directions qua the meeting of the petitioner/ wife with the minor child for two hours in the afternoon of every Sunday have been passed in extension of the earlier interim orders dated 20.12.2024 and 01.02.2025 also passed by the same Court. The aforesaid order dated 08.09.2025 is taken on record.

Learned counsel for both petitioner/ wife and respondent no.1/ husband along with the parties present in person submit that, without going into the merits/ controversy of the matter, the parties are agreeable to sincerely make all efforts for enabling the petitioner/ wife to meet the minor child. For this, both parties submit that they are agreeable for fixing the meeting of the minor child with the petitioner/ wife on either Saturday or Sunday of every week, for a minimum of two hours on each visit, inside the V3S Mall, Nirman Vihar, Delhi-110 092 .

Accordingly, the respondent no.1/ husband shall arrange for the petitioner to meet the minor child on either Saturday or Sunday of every week, for a minimum of two hours on each visit, inside the V3S Mall, Nirman Vihar, Delhi-110 092 , after mutually discussing the arrangements qua the exact venue and timings with the petitioner/ wife at least a day in advance.

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Additionally, both parties agree that in accordance with paragraph no.9 of the aforesaid order dated 12.12.2024 passed by the Hon’ble Division Bench the respondent no.1/ husband shall make the minor child talk on a video call with the petitioner/ wife.

As such, the terms set out in the earlier orders dated 12.12.2024 passed by the Hon’ble Division Bench of this Court and that dated 08.09.2025 passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class (Mahila Court)-01, South East District, Saket Courts, New Delhi are modified to the aforesaid extent.

In view of the aforesaid, learned counsel for the petitioner seeks to withdraw the present petition with liberty to approach this Court if, as and when required.

Heard. Allowed in the aforesaid terms.

Needless to say, since this Court has passed the above directions with the consent of the parties who are present in person, the parties shall be bound by the aforesaid terms till the pendency of the disputes and/ or any subsequent modification thereto.

SAURABH BANERJEE, J.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2025/So

This is a digitally signed order.

The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 25/09/2025 at 12:23:05