Actor Celina Jaitly alleges domestic violence against husband Peter Haag

Alleging that Haag has blocked her from all access to her children, barring on one occasion on November 14, Jaitly has sought directions for “unhindered virtual and telephonic access” to them.

The plea says that Haag has also initiated divorce proceedings in Austria, where their marriage was registered under Austrian civil law in 2010.

In her plea, Jaitly is seeking a monthly maintenance of Rs 10 lakh from Haag. She has also sought compensation of Rs 50 crore on account of loss of earnings due to the alleged abuse meted out to her and Rs 50 crore as compensation. Jaitly has also sought, among other reliefs, directions to Haag not to interfere with the possession of and from entering their shared household, a flat in Andheri in Mumbai. She has also sought Rs 1.26 crore towards the loss allegedly caused to her due to the removal of the Mumbai and Vienna properties from her control, and another Rs 32 lakh for alleged misappropriation of funds.

In her plea filed through law firm Karanjawala and Co, Jaitly, 47, has said that she met Haag, 48, in Dubai through common friends. She has said that after a brief courtship, they got married in September 2010, in a Hindu ceremony in Mumbai. The marriage was registered in Austria in the same month.

She has alleged that Haag told her that all Indian grooms he knew had received generous gifts from the bride’s family and demanded luxury apparel, cufflinks and jewellery, which were given by her parents to him, with the cufflinks costing Rs 6 lakh, and jewellery worth Rs 10 lakh. Her plea lists various alleged incidents of “cruelty and violence”, including from their honeymoon in Italy, in their shared home in Mumbai and during the birth of their twins in 2012.

Jaitly has also alleged that Haag had made her move to Dubai in 2011, citing better healthcare facilities. She has alleged that following the birth of her children, she was forced to give up her acting career entirely for their care and to support Haag’s overseas assignments, on his insistence. They later moved to Singapore, where she accepted occasional paid appearances and existing brand endorsements to meet her basic personal expenses, she has said.

‘Constant humiliation caused immense mental distress’

Jaitly’s plea further alleges that she faced many instances of verbal abuse and racist insults. “These insults were particularly cruel considering that the complainant was Miss India 2001, Miss Universe runner-up, a respected actress reputed for her beauty and screen charisma who had brought honour to India internationally, and an academically accomplished woman who had successfully cleared India’s Combined Defence Services Examination, a rare distinction for any civilian. Such constant humiliation caused her immense mental distress and a gradual breakdown of her self-esteem,” the plea says.

Jaitly has said that there was a pattern of financial and emotional coercion, and alleged that Haag had secured ownership of her Indian property, and that she learnt that he had sold off their Vienna property in July without informing her. She has also alleged that he had confiscated and hidden her belongings, including her Miss India crown and sash. She has also said that after her brother’s ‘abduction’ in 2024 in the Middle East, she had sought emotional support from Haag, but he had instead blamed him for his prospects of working in the UAE.

A civil dispute between them regarding their property in Mumbai is also pending before the sessions court.

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