There is no benefit in attempting to save 'totally dead' marriages, says the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The statement came in view of the case involving a marital dispute.
The court further recognised prolonged marital separation as mental cruelty, ruling that forcing a couple to remain married under such circumstances is unreasonable.
The case:
The case involved an Air Force officer challenging a 2014 judgment by an Additional District Judge, which had dismissed his petition for divorce under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act.
The officer had been living separately from his wife for 17 years, with no possibility of reconciliation.
The court observed that compelling the couple to reunite after such a lengthy separation would be legally impractical and emotionally damaging. It stressed that such a situation would create a "legal fiction," disregarding the reality of the relationship and the emotional well-being of both parties.
The court also highlighted that while preserving matrimonial bonds is a court’s duty, this obligation diminishes when a marriage has irretrievably broken down. The judge ruled that prolonged separation and an absence of any attempt to reconcile amounted to mental cruelty, making it impossible for one party to live with the other.
Further, the court noted that cruelty, whether physical or mental, must be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The spouse alleging cruelty must demonstrate conduct that makes the reunion of the couple infeasible.
In this case, the husband’s acquittal in a criminal case filed by the wife was also deemed an act of cruelty.
The court pointed out that the ongoing litigation had only worsened the relationship, leaving no possibility for reconciliation.
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