Prolonged marital disputes cause frustration, keep marriage on paper: Supreme Court | Today’s news
The Supreme Court noted that allowing matrimonial disputes to remain unresolved for years only served to keep the marriage alive on paper because it dissolved the marriage of a couple who had lived apart for more than 15 years.
The court noted that the Rajasthan High Court had earlier granted divorce to the husband on several grounds, including allegations of cruelty by the wife. Among the factors considered was the wife’s repeated denial of sexual relations, which, according to the Supreme Court, constituted mental cruelty.
“Courts in India have repeatedly shown that withholding sexual intimacy causes severe emotional distress and undermines the bedrock of marriage,” Justices Sanjay Karol and Augustine George Masih said.
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“Therefore, the conclusion of the High Court is confirmed. The result of the day divorce as granted by allowing the appeal of the respondent-husband,” he stated.
Referring to its earlier decisions, the Supreme Court reiterated that permanent refusal of sexual intercourse and denial of conjugal rights without reasonable justification can constitute mental cruelty under Section 13(1)(a). ia) of the Hindu Marriage Act and may provide a valid ground for divorce.
The bench noted that both the couple, who got married in December 2007, are medical professionals employed in government services, with the husband posted in Rajasthan and the wife in Gujarat.
Invoking its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to ensure complete justice, the Supreme Court held that the marriage had irretrievably broken down and therefore deserved to be divorced.
The verdict was delivered on June 2 in response to the wife’s appeal against the Rajasthan High Court’s February 2025 judgment that allowed the husband’s divorce petition.
The Supreme Court pointed out that the couple had remained separated for more than 15 years, had no children and had failed to reconcile despite repeated efforts for judicial intervention.
The court emphasized that marriage in its legal and constitutional framework cannot be viewed solely as a contract between two individuals or judged solely on the basis of conjugal rights claims.
According to the court, marital rights are inseparable from the corresponding obligations arising from marriage. He noted that a permanent departure from the basic duties of married life could have legal consequences when courts consider allegations of mental cruelty.
“To demand fulfillment of the former and deliberately abandon the sanctity of the latter is to undermine the very essence of the institution,” the bench said.
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After examining the facts of the case, the court found that even during the short time that the parties lived together, they were unable to fulfill their marital obligations. He further noted that prolonged separation eroded the sanctity of the relationship and left little substance in the marriage.
While the wife claimed that she had resigned from her job in Gujarat and shifted to Rajasthan, the court observed that no evidence was brought on record to support this claim.
The court also emphasized that in cases where matrimonial litigation drags on for an extended period of time, it is often in the interest of both parties and society that such ties are formally severed rather than extended indefinitely.
The Supreme Court rejected the wife’s appeal and ultimately upheld the dissolution of the marriage.
