A Mumbai Family Court has dissolved a couple’s marriage, ruling that making unsubstantiated allegations about a spouse’s character, including extramarital affairs and drinking habits, amounts to mental cruelty and can serve as grounds for divorce. The legal proceedings lasted more than 12 years.
Court grants divorce on cruelty grounds
The case involves a 59-year-old former Indian Air Force officer. The court allowed the husband's counter-claim for divorce on grounds of cruelty, recognised his right to reside in the couple’s Kandivli flat and directed his wife to return the original property documents of their Kandivli and Santacruz flats.
According to a report by The Times of India, the judge observed that although cruelty is not specifically defined under the Hindu Marriage Act, it is a relative term that varies from person to person and depends on the status and circumstances of the spouses.
Unsubstantiated allegations cited as mental cruelty
The court further observed that making allegations about a spouse’s character without evidence amounts to mental cruelty. The husband's advocate, Kanupriya Kejriwal, argued that his wife had made reckless allegations of extramarital affairs and alcoholism without providing any supporting evidence. She also submitted that the husband's testimony remained unchallenged as the wife had not cross-examined him.
Couple’s allegations and counterclaims
The couple married in Mumbai in December 1997 and have a daughter. The wife, a practising lawyer, filed for divorce in early 2014 and sought relief under the Domestic Violence Act, alleging physical, sexual, psychological and economic abuse. She also accused her husband of being violent, alcoholic and unfaithful.
The husband denied the allegations, claiming that his wife repeatedly suspected him of having extramarital affairs during official trips. He further alleged that she pressured him to leave the Indian Air Force for a private-sector job and later filed a false police complaint against him.
The court, after hearing both sides, gave its final verdict, ending the couple's marriage.
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