Unproven Sexual Allegations Against Father-in-law, Husband Amount to Cruelty: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court recently dissolved the marriage of a couple embroiled in a protracted matrimonial dispute, holding that unsubstantiated sexual allegations made by the wife against her husband and father-in-law constituted mental cruelty.

A division bench of Justices J. Nisha Banu and R. Sakthivel allowed the husband’s appeals against the 2023 family court orders which had dismissed his plea for divorce and directed restitution of conjugal rights in favour of the wife. The high court held that the allegations, though later withdrawn, were serious, defamatory, and left unproven, thereby causing irreparable mental agony.

The couple married in 2015 and had a son in 2016. According to the husband, the marriage began to deteriorate when the wife refused to live with his family, insisted on a separate residence, and frequently left for her parental home without cause. He also claimed that she threatened to lodge false complaints and eventually accused his father of sexual harassment and him of having illicit relationships with other women.

The wife later withdrew her October 2017 complaint against the husband and his father, allegedly based on his assurance of reconciliation. However, the husband never began living with her. She then sought restitution of conjugal rights, stating that she still wished to maintain the marriage for the sake of their child.

The family court accepted the wife’s version and dismissed the husband’s divorce petition, stating that merely withdrawing the complaint did not imply it was false. The court also held that asking for a separate residence due to allegations of harassment by in-laws could not be treated as cruelty.

The high court, however, took a different view. It observed that the wife had failed to substantiate her allegations with any evidence or pursue the complaint further when reconciliation did not occur.

“Unsubstantiated or uncorroborated defamatory averments cause stigma and mental agony and, in the facts and circumstances of this case, amount to cruelty,” the court held.

The bench noted that the couple had been living separately for over seven years and attempts at mediation had failed. While the wife may still be willing to resume the marriage, her past conduct gave the husband reasonable cause to fear further harm, the court said.

"His apprehensions about continuing the marital life with the respondent, even after the defamatory and derogatory allegations of sexual nature against him and his father, cannot be brushed aside simply," court said. 

In its concluding remarks, the court granted the divorce under Section 13(1)(i-a) of the Hindu Marriage Act but clarified that the order would not affect the wife’s and their child’s right to claim maintenance under applicable laws. The husband was already paying Rs. 25,000 per month in maintenance, and the court allowed her to seek enhancement if needed.

Case Title: X  vs. Y

Download judgment here