Act, allegation of infidelity by spouse is mental cruelty: HC

The act and allegation of infidelity by either of the spouse, irrespective of the gender, is on an equal footing and would also cause mental cruelty to the other partner with the same intensity, the Delhi High Court has said.

A bench of Justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Yogesh Khanna observed that in matrimonial disputes it was difficult to find out where the truth lies due to the allegations and counter allegations made by the parties as there was a tendency to "blow up" the incidents.

"An act of infidelity by either spouse, irrespective of the gender, is on an equal footing and would cause mental cruelty to the other spouse with the same intensity," the high court said while allowing a petition by a man against a trial court's verdict dismissing his plea seeking divorce from his wife on the ground of cruelty.
 

The high court, while setting aside the trial court's 2012 verdict, said that since December 2005 the couple, who had married in December 1992, were living separately and no useful purpose would be served in maintaining the matrimonial bond.

"Where a marriage is broken down irretrievably, the insistence by one to continue with the matrimonial bond itself would be evidence of the desire to inflict further cruelty on the other," the bench noted in its judgement while granting divorce to the man.

Dealing with the allegations levelled by the woman that her husband was in touch with many other women over phone even after their marriage, the bench said her deposition on this issue was "not convincing".

"The judge, family court, has held against the appellant (husband) on the ground that the appellant had to render an explanation as to why so many women were calling him. The judge has held that the appellant had to remove the suspicion from the mind of his wife," it said.

"A gender bias approach to the issue is revealed, when the judge reasons that unchastity by a wife is to be viewed seriously because a higher level of fidelity is expected from a wife. An allegation of infidelity made against the husband cannot be treated as mental torture. The approach by the judge is totally perverse and contrary to law," the bench said.

In 2007, the husband had approached a trial court seeking divorce alleging that his wife had a violent temper and without any reason, she had tried to commit suicide in March 1993.

The woman had denied the allegations and had claimed that she was forced to terminate her pregnancy in 1995.

However, the high court observed that her testimony about the alleged termination of pregnancy was not convincing.