Profile :
➢ Chethana Ramatheertha is the wife of the current head coach of the Indian cricket team and former right-arm leg-spin bowler, Anil Kumble.
First Marriage & Divorce :
➢ In the year 1986, Chethana Ramatheertha was married to a leading stockbroker and a prominent activist in the cause for equal rights for men, Kumar V. Jahgirdar, at Mysore.
➢ On December 7, 1994, she gave birth to a girl, named Aaruni. When the girl was about two years old, Chethana took a job in Trans-Oceanic Travels. Not happy with her married life, Chethana left her first husband’s home in the year 1998 and sent a legal notice through her lawyer unwilling to live with her husband.
➢ On a joint petition, filed by the parties in the Family Court for dissolution of marriage by mutual consent, a decree of divorce was passed on April 17, 1999, and they separated after being married for 13 years. The separated parents, in accordance with the conditions of divorce by consent, agreed to their appointment as joint guardians with periodic custody of the child. They also agreed to keep the child alternatively every week.
Marriage to Anil Kumble and Family :
➢ It is believed that Anil Kumble met the Chethana at travel agency Trans-Oceanic Travels where she used to work. They both got married on July 1, 1999, after Chethana’s divorce. The couple later had two children – son Mayas Kumble and daughter Svasti Kumble.
Custody Battle :
➢ As per the mutual arrangement agreed between Chethana and Kumar Jahgirdar, Chethana took custody of the child for a week in the year 1999. She soon thereafter got married to Anil Kumble and went out of the country with him.
➢ During this time Aaruni was under the custody of her biological father, Kumar. When Chethana returned from abroad, she filed an application in the Family Court on August 12, 1999, seeking exclusive custody of the child. The family court rejected her application regarding custody. She then approached Karnataka High Court, which gave liberty to both parties to approach the family court again for alteration or modification of the terms of consent of divorce.
➢ On Chetana’s application, the family court gave custody to her. Jahgirdar again made an appeal in the Karnataka High Court and the order was reversed. But on Chethana’s revision petition, the same high court directed to place the child in her custody for continuous one-year’s periods.
Next Stage :
➢ Jahgirdar again made an appeal in the Supreme Court but his appeal was rejected and Chethana was allowed to retain custody of the child with visitation rights to Jahgirdar. The court also advised Chethana to leave Aaruni Kumble with her former husband whenever she went on tours with Anil Kumble.
➢ When Kumar Jahgirdar remarried, he again filed a petition before the family court saying Aaruni needed his guidance in her career. But the appeal was rejected.