Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): A woman in the city has divorced her husband because she does not want to have a child. The couple obtained a divorce by mutual consent from the Bhopal District Family Court recently after 11 years of marriage.
The woman said India was not suitable for bringing up children and that sending them abroad for education would be expensive. She also cited pollution, shortcomings in the education system and a lack of jobs as reasons.
The woman (40) works with an NGO and the man (42) is a banker. They had a love marriage in 2015. At the time of the marriage, the woman had put forward the condition that they would not have a child, which the man accepted. A few years later, the man changed his mind and wanted a child to continue his family. However, the woman refused and was not willing to adopt a child either.
According to Shail Awasthi, a counsellor at the Family Court who counselled the couple, the woman was asked why she did not want to have a child. She replied that India already had 135 crore people and there was no need to add more.
The woman also said India was not a suitable place to bring up a child. She cited polluted air and water, shortcomings in the education system and a lack of jobs. She said that if they had a child, they would eventually have to send the child abroad for education, which would require a huge amount of money and significant sacrifices.
Awasthi said the man did not agree, and the couple began living separately in 2022. They eventually filed a petition for divorce by mutual consent before the Bhopal District Family Court in 2026. The court accepted the petition and granted them a divorce.
