The Delhi High Court has upheld the annulment of a marriage after concluding that a husband concealed vital facts on his matrimonial website profile. A Division Bench comprising Justice Anil Kshetrapal and Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar ruled that hiding a previous marriage and exaggerating income amounted to fraud under Section 12(1)(c) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
The Judgment, pronounced on 20 August 2025, dismissed the husband's appeal against his wife. Earlier, the Family Court had already declared the marriage void, holding that the wife’s consent had been secured through misrepresentation.
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False Claims on Shaadi.com
The controversy began when the husbands Shaadi.com profile showed him as "never married" with an annual income above USD 200,000. Later, evidence proved he had been married before, had a child from that marriage, and was actually earning far less.
Observing the distinction, the Court said:
"The phrase 'never married' is a clear declaration of lifelong status. To confuse it with 'unmarried', as argued by the appellant, is both flawed and misleading."
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The judges further underlined that financial misstatements were equally serious. Referring to earlier rulings, they noted that inflating income in matrimonial profiles is fraudulent, especially since salary details often influence decisions to marry.
The husband contended that his parents had created the online profile and that he had disclosed his earlier marriage during an initial meeting. He also argued that the annulment proceedings had been delayed.
Rejecting these claims, the Bench remarked:
"Deliberately hiding one's marital history is not a minor lapse but a suppression of facts striking at the root of the marriage. Such concealment destroys free and informed consent."
On the income issue, the Court reaffirmed that false claims about salary in marriage negotiations amount to fraud. It emphasised that the wife, being highly educated and financially independent, deserved truthful disclosure before entering the marriage.
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The Court also pointed out that matrimonial websites give users the option to list their status as "divorced." Despite this, the husband had opted for "never married." The judges highlighted that having a child from a previous marriage was a crucial fact which any potential partner must be told.
Finding no merit in the appeal, the High Court concluded that the Family Court’s decision was correct and left it undisturbed.
Case TItle:- X & Y
