Yes — and in many situations, combining both proceedings is not only permissible but strategically sound, because the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 and the divorce petition before the Nashik Family Court are independent proceedings that can run simultaneously and powerfully reinforce each other.

The PWDVA defines "domestic violence" broadly to include physical abuse, sexual abuse, verbal and emotional abuse, economic abuse (withholding maintenance, controlling finances, refusing to return streedhan), and harassment. A Domestic Incident Report is filed with the Protection Officer for Nashik, after which the court can grant — even on an urgent ex-parte basis — a Protection Order preventing the abuser from contacting or approaching you; a Residence Order securing your right to the shared household or requiring alternative accommodation; a Custody Order for your children; and Monetary Relief covering maintenance, medical expenses, and compensation. The Nashik Magistrate can pass an ex-parte Protection Order within a single day where the situation demands immediate intervention.

The critical interaction with your divorce petition is this: the same acts of violence, cruelty, or economic abuse that ground a Protection Order under the PWDVA also constitute mental or physical cruelty — a ground for divorce under Section 13(1)(ia) of the Hindu Marriage Act. A Protection Order passed by the Nashik Magistrate becomes evidence of the conduct you have alleged in your Family Court divorce petition. Interim maintenance under the PWDVA can also run alongside maintenance under Section 24 of the HMA and under Section 144 BNSS before the Magistrate — three reinforcing financial support streams during the proceedings. The family law and domestic violence specialists at the Nashik panel of Aapka Legal Advice can coordinate both proceedings so every filing reinforces the others.