The Madras High Court recently made important observations in a divorce case involving allegations of cruelty and desertion between a husband and wife. The court stated that secretly arranging a daughter’s marriage without informing her father can amount to “extreme mental cruelty.”
However, despite this observation, the court refused to grant divorce to the husband, saying the facts of the case showed neglect on his part rather than desertion by the wife.
The case was heard by a Division Bench comprising Justice C.V. Karthikeyan and Justice K. Rajasekar. The husband had filed for divorce under Sections 13(1)(i-a) and 13(1)(i-b) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, claiming that his wife treated him with cruelty and deserted him.
According to court records, the couple got married in January 2012. Around seven months after the marriage, the husband moved to Singapore to work as a construction labourer. During this period, the wife stayed at her parental home during pregnancy and after childbirth.
The husband argued that he regularly sent money home while working abroad. However, the court noted that the money was sent to his mother and not directly to his wife or child. The judges observed that a husband cannot ignore his responsibilities towards his family and later accuse the wife of abandoning the matrimonial home.
The court found no strong evidence proving cruelty or desertion by the wife. Instead, it highlighted that the husband failed to provide adequate emotional and financial support to his wife during a crucial phase of her life.
At the same time, the bench remarked that if a mother secretly arranges her daughter’s marriage without informing the father, it can deeply hurt the father emotionally and may amount to mental cruelty in certain circumstances.
The ruling has sparked discussions about responsibilities within marriage, emotional neglect, and the importance of communication between family members. Legal experts say the judgment reinforces the idea that courts examine the conduct of both spouses carefully before granting divorce.
The decision also highlights that working abroad does not free a person from family responsibilities, especially towards a spouse and child.
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