Yuzvendra Chahal, Dhanashree Verma granted divorce by Mumbai family court: Lawyer
Yuzvendra Chahal and Dhanashree Verma were granted a divorce by a Mumbai family court after a joint petition.
Yuzvendra Chahal and Dhanashree Verma divorce news: Indian cricketer Yuzvendra Chahal and dance choreographer Dhanashree Verma were granted divorce by a family court in Mumbai on Thursday, March 20, said Chahal's lawyer.
“The court has granted the decree of divorce. The court has accepted the joint petition of both parties. The parties are no longer husband and wife,” advocate Nitin Kumar Gupta told reporters outside the court.
The duo had arrived at Mumbai's Bandra Family Court in Mumbai to finalise the proceedings and put an end to the saga that has been grabbing headlines for some time now.
The development came after the Bombay high court on Wednesday set aside the family court’s order refusing to waive the statutory six-month cooling-off period for the couple's proceedings.
The high court also directed the family court to decide on the divorce plea by Thursday due to Chahal’s impending participation in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) that begins on Saturday.
According to a report by The Indian Express, advocate Nitin Gupta appeared for the petitioners in front of the high court and informed them about the Indian spinner’s unavailability from March 21 and said a further delay would only prolong the agony. The couple has asked for an immediate decree of divorce to be granted to them.
Justice Madhav Jamdar directed the Bandra family court in the city to decide the couple's divorce petition by March 20 as the cricketer would not be available after March 21 on account of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The cricketer and Verma had filed a joint petition before the HC seeking that the cooling-off period be waived in their case as they have applied for divorce by mutual consent.
The couple challenged the family court order of February 20, refusing to waive the cooling-off period. Under the Hindu Marriage Act, a couple has to undergo a six-month cooling-off period before divorce is granted. The objective is to provide time for exploring the possibility of reconciliation. Granting relief to the estranged couple, Justice Jamdar noted that "petitioner No 1" (Chahal) was participating in the IPL, and might not be available after March 21, as informed by his lawyer. "The family court is hence requested to decide their divorce plea by tomorrow (March 20)," the HC said.
The IPL T20 cricket tournament is scheduled to start from March 22. Chahal is part of the Punjab Kings team. Chahal and Dhanashree Verma got married in December 2020. As per their petition, they separated in June 2022. On February 5, they filed a joint petition before the family court seeking divorce by mutual consent. The high court took note of the fact that Chahal and Verma were living apart for more than two and a half years, and there was compliance with the consent terms arrived at during mediation between the two parties regarding the payment of alimony.
The family court had refused to waive the cooling-off period on the ground that there was only partial compliance with the consent terms which required Chahal to pay ₹4.75 crore to Dhanashree.
He had paid ₹2.37 crore, the family court noted. It also cited a report of the marriage counselor, which said there was only partial compliance with the mediation efforts.
But the high court on Wednesday held there was compliance with the consent terms, as they provided for the payment of the second installment of permanent alimony only after the decree of divorce was obtained.
Report on Yuzuvendra Chahal and Dhanashree Verma separation
A report by Bar and Bench suggested that Yuzuvendra Chahal and Dhanashree Verma have been separated since 2022.
The report mentions that Chahal and Verma have been separated since June 2022, hence they have a ground to get the cooling-off period waived. The court is making the exception as the couple had already been living apart for over two and a half years and had agreed upon the payment of alimony.
