The Bombay High Court has ruled that a spouse making threats to commit suicide or attempting to do so constitutes cruelty. This, in turn, is a valid ground for seeking divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act.
Justice R. M. Joshi dismissed a second appeal filed by a woman challenging a Family Court judgment that had granted her husband a divorce. The lower court had determined that the wife had subjected her husband to cruelty, thereby justifying the dissolution of their marriage.
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Court Observations and Findings
The husband's allegations stated that his wife frequently threatened him and his elderly parents with false accusations, including claims that she would commit suicide to implicate them in legal cases. He further alleged that she once attempted suicide by cutting her veins. To conceal the injury, she applied mehendi on her hands when called as a witness in court.
"The husband has not only alleged that his wife used to threaten him and his family with imprisonment by committing suicide, but in fact, she also attempted to do so. Such an act constitutes cruelty and justifies granting a divorce," Justice Joshi stated in his ruling on February 20.
Additionally, the husband claimed that his wife falsely accused his father of outraging her modesty, alleging that he was an alcoholic who frequently abused and physically attacked her. However, the trial court and appellate court records showed that the wife failed to substantiate her claims or defend herself against the husband's allegations.
Legal Analysis and Judgment
The court noted that the findings of both the Trial Court and the First Appellate Court were consistent. Justice Joshi determined that no errors or substantial questions of law existed in the appeal, warranting any interference with the lower courts' decisions.
"The evidence on record sufficiently establishes that the findings of the lower courts are justified. As there is no legal perversity in the findings, there is no ground for this court to interfere. Consequently, the appeal stands dismissed," the judge ruled.
With this conclusion, the court rejected the wife's appeal and upheld the divorce decree granted to the husband.
Case Details
- Case Title: V. C. vs. N. C. (Second Appeal 268 of 2018)
- Judgment Date: February 20, 2025
- Bench: Justice R. M. Joshi
- Counsel for Wife: Advocates M. P. Tripathi and N. B. Khandare
- Counsel for Husband: Advocates Kshitij Surve and Hemant Surve
