‘Wife influenced by parents’: Delhi High Court grants divorce to man on grounds of cruelty

The Delhi High Court recently granted divorce to a man on the grounds that his wife had committed cruelty against him and she was allegedly unduly influenced by her parents, which hampered the establishment of a marital relationship.

The bench, headed by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait, noted that there was substantial evidence that the wife’s parents and family members had “unreasonably interfered” in the couple’s marital life, causing great suffering to the husband.

The court noted: “From the evidence provided by all parties, it is clear that the defendant’s parents and family members unreasonably interfered with the appellant’s married life, as the appellant claimed.”

The decision came in response to the husband’s appeal against a previous Family Court decision denying divorce. The High Court also noted that the parties had been separated for about 13 years, during which the husband faced deprivation of conjugal relations and suffered various complaints against him, which amounted to cruelty.

A bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna in its recent order said the husband had successfully proved the cruelty inflicted on him by his wife entitle him to divorce.

The court emphasized the wife’s failure to break away from her parents’ influence and establish a relationship with her husband, characterizing this behavior as emotional abuse.

The court emphasized the importance of the relationship between husband and wife in marriage and held that the continuation of the “death relationship” would cause further cruelty to both parties. It condemned the filing of false complaints against the husband and his family, saying it amounted to emotional abuse.

Furthermore, the court emphasized that the cornerstone of any marital relationship is cohabitation and the relationship between husband and wife. The lack of conjugal companionship, combined with the wife’s reluctance to resume the marital relationship, was seen as an act of extreme cruelty.

“If a spouse is deprived of his wife’s company, it proves that the marriage cannot be sustained. This act of depriving the couple of the relationship is extremely cruel. Such a long separation without the wife making any efforts to restore the marital relationship is cruel. conduct, as held in Samar Ghosh v. Jaya Ghosh (2007),” the court said.

Based on the evidence presented, the court concluded that a reconciliation between the parties was not possible given the false accusations, police reports and criminal trial that had resulted in a lengthy separation. This condition is considered a sign of emotional abuse.

“We therefore conclude that the evidence on record proves that there is no chance of reconciliation between the parties and that such a prolonged separation coupled with false accusations, police reports and criminal trials can only be termed as emotional abuse. The marriage between the parties The discord has resulted in a complete loss of confidence, trust, understanding, love and affection on both sides. This lifeless relationship has been fraught with acrimony, irreconcilable differences and protracted litigation. Any insistence on continuing this relationship will only serve to destabilize both parties. Subjected to further cruelty,” the judges said.

“We, therefore, set aside the impugned judgment dated May 29, 2009 and grant the divorce under Section 13(i)(ia) of the HMA, 1955. The appeal is therefore allowed,” the court ordered.