In matrimonial disputes, cruelty can be of infinite variety including silence, subtle gestures and words, and cannot be pre-determined by any rigid formula, the Supreme Court has held.
A Bench of Justices P. Sathasivam and A.K. Ganguly said: “Whether a husband is cruel to his wife or a wife is cruel to her husband has to be ascertained and judged by taking into account the entire facts and circumstances of the given case and not by any pre-determined rigid formula.”
The wife leaving her matrimonial home (as in the instant case) “does not amount to desertion if she has reasonable cause for doing so.” The party alleging desertion must prove not only that the spouse was living separately but also that “there is an animus deserendi on the part of the wife, and the husband must prove that he has not conducted himself in a way which furnished reasonable cause for the wife to stay away from the matrimonial home.”
Justice Ganguly, writing the judgment, said: “In a matrimonial relationship, cruelty would obviously mean absence of mutual respect and understanding which embitters relationship and often leads to various outbursts of behaviour which can be termed cruelty. Therefore, cruelty in matrimonial behaviour defies any definition and its category can never be closed. If the wife, due to constant harassment, is compelled to leave the matrimonial home and live separately, the husband cannot invoke the ground of “desertion” as provided under the Hindu Marriages Act to obtain divorce.”
In the instant case, Ravi Kumar of Mandi district in Himachal Pradesh had been living separately from Julmi Devi for about 16 years since May 1994.
The couple, married on December 13, 1988, got separated immediately after the birth of their child.
A trial court granted Ravi Kumar divorce on grounds of desertion by his wife but the High Court reversed the order.
Appeal dismissed
Dismissing his appeal against this judgment, the Supreme Court noted that the trial court had not properly appreciated the evidence of the child, “which has clearly stated the cruelty of the appellant- husband towards his wife. According to the child, the appellant used to beat her.”
The Bench, therefore, rejected his allegations of desertion and cruelty.
