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Synopsis

In a recent ruling, the Allahabad High Court granted a divorce to a couple noting that compelling estranged spouses to cohabit when they harbor intense animosity toward one another would amount to cruelty.

A division bench of Justices Saumitra Dayal Singh and Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal further emphasized that forcing the parties to reside together could be more detrimental to the public interest than dissolving the marriage bond.

Court took into account the existence of criminal cases and bitter property disputes between the two parties, in addition to allegations of extramarital affairs against each other.

The judges concluded that forcing them to coexist despite their profound aversion would constitute cruelty.

While allowing the divorce, court ordered the husband to provide his wife with a permanent alimony of Rs 1 crore within three months.

In case of any delay in payment, an annual interest rate of 6% would be imposed from the date of the judgment until the actual payment date, court directed. 

The order was passed in an appeal moved by the husband who was dissatisfied with the dismissal of his divorce petition by a family court on November 7, 2019

The couple had married in 2002, and the husband had previously obtained an uncontested divorce decree in 2016. However, the wife successfully applied to have the divorce decree recalled, prompting the reinstatement of the divorce petition and the subsequent hearings before the family court.

The husband's counsel argued that the wife had falsely accused him in criminal cases, which ultimately resulted in his acquittal. He contended that these baseless claims, combined with other legal conflicts, had caused emotional distress and constituted cruelty.

Furthermore, he asserted that the couple had been living separately since 2014, making reconciliation impossible due to the bitterness stemming from the legal battles.

While the court acknowledged that the husband had not explicitly established cruelty in their day-to-day life, it found the wife's actions, including filing false criminal cases and engaging in continuous legal disputes, to be a form of cruelty.

Court cited the Supreme Court's judgment in Naveen Kohli v Neelu Kohli (2006), which recognized that filing false complaints against a spouse could be an act of cruelty.

In light of the facts in the case and the protracted legal disputes between the parties, court concluded that the marriage had suffered an irretrievable breakdown due to the cruelty endured by the husband. Consequently, it allowed the husband's plea and granted the divorce.

Case Title: Ashok Jha v. Pratibha Jha