Days after his second wedding, Shikhar Dhawan has received a belated gift from a Delhi Court. The former India opener's ex-wife Aesha Mukherji has been ordered to pay ₹5.7 crore as the Patiala House Court ruled all their settlements 'null and void'. Dhawan and Mukherji married in 2012 before their divorce in 2021. The ex-India opener has a son named Zorawar born in 2014.
As per Bar And Bench, Judge Devender Kumar Garg of the Patiala House Court ruled that all financial settlements were executed by Dhawan under threats, extortion, trickery and fraudulent action. As a result, Mukherji has been asked to return approximately AU$894,397 (₹5.7 crore) she had received as part of an interim settlement from the sale of an Australian property.
Furthermore, the Patiala House Court ruled that Dhawan's ex-wife has to pay an interest of 9 percent per annum on the amount since the time Dhawan instituted the suit. The court ruled that the settlement, made by an Australian court was 'null and void and that the Australian court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the marital disputes between Dhawan and his ex-wife.
In his divorce, Shikhar Dhawan alleged that soon after the wedding his wife began threatening to circulate “fabricated, defamatory and false” material to damage his reputation and cricket career.
Dhawan told the court that although he purchased several properties using his own funds, he was compelled to register them in their joint names. In one instance, his wife was listed as the 99% owner of a property he had bought, the court was informed.
Between 2021 and 2024, an Australian court passed multiple orders regarding the division of assets between the parties.
However, Dhawan argued that the monetary calculations made by the Australian court were contrary to the provisions of the Hindu Marriage Act and Indian law. He also sought a declaration that he was not bound by the foreign court’s orders.
After hearing the matter, the family court accepted Dhawan’s arguments and ruled that he is not bound by the Australian court’s order.
