Social torture classifies as cruelty for purposes of divorce, Patna HC holds [Read Judgment]

PATNA: Granting divorce to a husband who claimed that the wife had made false allegations before his employer about domestic violence and of him and his mother soliciting prostitution, the Patna High Court has held that social torture in a marriage also amounts to mental torture, and thus, cruelty.

The Patna High Court has held that making false accusations of adultery, fornication, and coerced prostitution, by a woman against her husband not only constitutes social torture due to character assassination but the same also amounts to mental torture and thus classifies as cruelty for the ground of divorce.

The division bench of Justice P B Bajanthri and Justice Ramesh Chand Malviya observed, The leveling of false allegation by one spouse to the other having alleged illicit relations with different persons outside the wedlock amounted to mental cruelty. In the present case, respondent wife alleged allegations before the employer of appellant and in the domestic violence allegations of soliciting prostitution by appellant and his mother and appellant involved in adultery and fornication etc.

Importantly, the Court noted that the Respondent had admitted that she had made the false allegations at the instigation of her advocate.

Adding that the woman had harassed her husband by filing false cases of domestic violence knowing that certain allegations are false, the Court said that such behaviour amounts to cruelty.

It added that in such cases of cruelty, it becomes impossible for spouses to live together, Therefore, it is a marriage irretrievably broken down during the period from 04.06.2015 to this day in the light of institution of criminal proceedings, domestic violence and complaint to the employer, the bench stated, decreeing the divorce.

Cause Title: Alok Bharti v Jyoti Raj

[Read Judgment]