Supreme Court dissolves marriage over Rolls Royce dowry dispute

The Supreme Court has dissolved the marriage of a couple entangled in a bitter dowry and fraud dispute, involving a rare 1951 Rolls Royce car once ordered by Jawaharlal Nehru for the Maharani of Baroda. A Rs. 2.25 crore settlement was reached, ending all civil and criminal proceedings.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has dissolved the marriage of an estranged couple whose relationship soured over a 1951 model antique Rolls Royce car — previously ordered by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru for the erstwhile “Maharani” of Baroda.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant, Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi recorded the settlement arrived at between the parties, according to which the man will pay Rs 2.25 crore to the woman, upon which all claims between them will be settled.

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“We dissolve the marriage between the petitioner and respondent 1 (husband). There shall be no relationship, matrimonial or otherwise, between them hitherto,” the Bench held on August 29.

According to the settlement, the man will pay Rs 1 crore by August 31 and the rest Rs 1.25 crore would be paid by November 30. Under the arrangement, the woman would retain gifts given by her husband, and the husband would return all the gifts received by him and his family, such as the engagement ring, and other valuables, which he would hand over along with Rs 1 crore demand draft.

While quashing all cases between them, the bench held it to be a “full and final” settlement. After the severance, the top court cautioned the parties not to defame each other in any form, including on social media.

The woman, who lives in Gwalior, claimed she belongs to a highly-reputed family whose ancestor was an admiral in the Navy of Chhatarpati Shivaji Maharaj and declared the ruler of Konkan region. The husband, on the other hand, belongs to a family of Army officers and runs an educational institution in Madhya Pradesh.

A 1951 model antique hand-made classic Rolls Royce car, a single model till date and currently valued at over Rs 2.5 crore, ordered by Nehru for the erstwhile maharani of Baroda, became the bone of contention in the dispute.

The woman claimed her estranged husband and his family had continuously harassed her with dowry demands of the Rolls Royce car and a flat in Mumbai, a charge denied by the man.

The woman said in her plea, “The high court failed to consider that since inception the Respondent 1 & 2 (husband and his father) had a mala fide intention of demanding the Rolls Royce car which is one of its kind and it is handmade by HJ Mulliner & Co. for Maharani Baroda Chimna Bai Sahib Gaekwad ordered on her behalf by first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru and one flat in Mumbai.

“When the demands of the respondents were not met, they started denying the marriage and making false and frivolous allegations against the petitioner and started assassinating her character.”

Assailing the high court’s December 5, 2023 order, her plea said, “… it is clear that the respondent 1 (husband) and 2 (father of husband) have shown their fascination for the Rolls Royce car belonging to the father of the petitioner (woman) and in that context they expected to receive the said car in gift and with regard to flat at Mumbai and non-fulfillment of this dowry demand was precisely the reason for not taking petitioner to her matrimonial home.”

The dispute of the estranged couple reached the apex court after the Gwalior bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court quashed the woman’s dowry and cruelty case against her husband. The man, on the other hand, had lodged a case of cheating and forgery against the estranged wife, her parents and relatives in preparation of marriage certificate.

The top court had previously appointed senior advocate and former Judge of the Kerala High Court R Basant as mediator in the matter.