AUTHOR-Diksha Mehta
In one of the unprecedented moves, Gauhati High Court[1] granted a plea of divorce to a man whose wife refused to wear sindoor/sakha.
The court held that,
“The refusal of women to wear sindoor showed her unwillingness to continue her conjugal life with her husband”.
The court further said that since the marriage is solemnised in accordance with the Hindu customs and traditions, her refusal to wear sindoor/sakha will be against the rituals followed in Hindu society and this serves as an indicator that she does not accept the appellant as her husband and wishes to nullify the marital bond.
Cruelty is one of the grounds for divorce under Section 13 of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and both physical and mental cruelty constitutes cruelty[2]. The quandary is regarding the definition of Cruelty which has been deduced by the precedents till date. The Gauhati HC by delivering this judgement has brought the focus back to the importance of customs and usages in Hindu society along with widening the ambit of definition of mental cruelty.
[1] Sri Bhaskar Das v. Smti. Renu Das, Mat. App. 20/2019 (Gauhati HC) https://services.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=%2FE3WiyNUWFIaR1oBGE62WtZBUghzlbhSr8BtrBafYv5hB0nSkXlFpDwzOk8ezDTB&caseno=Mat.App./20/2019&cCode=1&appFlag=
[1] Shobha Rani v. Madhukar Reddi, 1988 S.C.R. (1)1010 (India); Narayan Ganesh Dastane v. Sucheta Narayan Dastane, 1975 S.C.R. (3) 967 (India).
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