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'Not having sex with spouse for long time a form of mental cruelty, says Allahabad High Court: Report
The husband sought a divorce on grounds of mental cruelty, divorce agreement and long desertion.
The Allahabad High Court dissolved a marriage last week as it observed that not allowing a spouse to have sexual intercourse with his or her partner for a long period of time without a proper reason was a form of mental cruelty to the spouse, LiveLaw reported.
A bench comprising justices Suneet Kumar and Rajendra Kumar quashed a family court's order by a Principal judge, which dismissed the divorce appeal under Section 13 Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
The Family Court had observed that the husband had submitted photocopies of documents, which are not admissible, instead of originals.
The husband sought a divorce on grounds of mental cruelty, divorce agreement and long desertion.
The bench said, “Since there is no acceptable view in which a spouse can be compelled to resume life with the consort, nothing is given by trying to keep the parties tied forever to a marriage than that has ceased to in fact.”
The husband, filing the appeal, submitted in the court that the couple got married in May 1979. He stated that after a while, his wife's behaviour changed and she declined to live as his wife with him. Despite trying to convince her, she did not engage or establish any relationship with him.
The husband added that while she lived with him for a few while, she eventually began living separately at her parents' house.
According to LiveLaw. the husband stated that after the first six months of their marriage, the husband tried to convince the wife to come back to his house, fulfil the marital “obligation” and respect the marital bond, but she refused.
In July 1994, as per the community rules, the husband sought a Panchayat meeting and the couple reached a divorce agreement after he had paid a permanent alimony to the wife of ₹22,000.
The wife after this, had a second marriage. When the husband tried to seek a divorce, she was absent in court.
The family court had said that the husband did not have any evidence to show that the wife had contracted a second marriage.
The High Court observed that it had been a long time since the husband and the wife had been living separately. The court further stated that as per the husband, the wife didn't respect the marital bond between them and hence there had been a breakdown of their marriage.
