Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Bhopal District Family Court is witnessing cases of men seeking divorce, fearing that their wives may physically harm them or themselves. Counsellors at the family court say that around 30 such cases are coming up before them every month.
The pattern is the same, though the cause of the dispute between couples is often different. In some cases, it is a woman's reluctance to live in a joint family; in other cases, it is due to financial issues or suspected infidelity.
In a new trend, men are filing divorce pleas saying that they want to part ways with their wives because they fear for their own lives or because they fear that their partners may end their lives and they would be blamed for it.
According to counsellors who handle such cases, the trend may have been partly caused by recent sensational reports of women involved in the murders of their partners. However, the main reason is that women today are more educated, aware and financially independent.
They are no longer ready to tolerate maltreatment from their husbands, said Ritu Patwa, one of the counsellors.
Another counsellor, Shail Awasthi, said, Earlier, it was the women who feared violence at the hands of their husbands. Now, it is men who do so, especially in cities, and among economically well-off, working couples.
Case 1
Wife's suicide threats
An MBA graduate, working for a private firm, has filed an application seeking divorce from his BTech wife, claiming that the latter keeps on threatening him that she would die by suicide.
The couple married seven years ago and are parents of a three-year-old girl. Both are in their mid-30s and have been living separately for the past three years. The man told the counsellor that he lives with his elderly parents and if his wife carries out her threat, both would be in trouble.
Case 2
Fear of blue drum
A couple who tied the knot about 12 years ago, have been living separately for the past four years. They have a child. The man is in a private job while the wife is a homemaker.
After the man moved a divorce plea, the case was referred for counselling. The man, however, rejected the suggestion that they should try living together for some time. He kept telling the counsellor that he wouldn't feel safe with her and feared she might stuff him into a blue drum.
Case 3
Fears for life
The husband and wife are both working. The woman is an HR professional. They were married in 2022 and lived together for only one year.
Following disputes, the man moved out of his house and rented another for himself. His wife now lives alone in the house owned by him. In his divorce plea, the man said he did not want to return to live with his wife as he feared for his life.
