Atul Subhash – Nikita Singhania row: 2,261 divorces cases/day filed in India, 43/day in Odisha! EXCLUSIVE!

Bhubaneswar: Is the great Indian family crumbling fast? The answer seems a big YES, if one goes by the cases filed at the family courts across the country. The fad of marital dispute is not a trend in few states alone, Odisha figures in the top-15 states in the country with high cases of divorce suits filed in the family courts. 

Sample the crisis. The total cases filed in family courts across India in the year 2021 were 4.97 lakh @ of 1363 cases per day. In year 2023, marital dispute cases filed jumped to 2,261 cases per day to total at a whopping 8.25 lakh.  The load of pending cases across the country in 2024 stood at a massive 11.4 lakh. 

The role of family court in settling marital disputes has come under the public glare after the tragic suicide of Bangalore Techie Atul Subhash suicide note came into public domain.

PARADIGM SHIFT BETWEEN 80s AND 2024?

The Family courts in India were set up under the Family Courts Act 1984. The case load has been so thin that during the late eighties and the whole of 90s, a total of 51 such designated courts were operational across the country.

Mark the BIG rise. 

In 2002-2003, the number of family courts in India stood at 85.

Fast forward to 2023-24, during the course of around 2-decades (20 yrs), the load of marital disputes across the country have clocked at such a rapid rate that the number of Family Courts in the country now stood at a massive 812.

AN INTERSETING ANECDOTE: In late 80s, when the family courts in India were at their infancy, judges then recommend warring couples filing marital dispute cases to watch the blockbuster film Pyar Jhukta Nahin, starring legendary star Mithun Chakraborty and Padmini Kolhapure, together and then approach family court. 

Fast forward to 2024, Family Court judges demanding bribe to settle a marital dispute case, and if hush money not billed, legal harassment unleashed, as unravelled by the deceased Bengaluru Techie Atul Subhash.  

Times have, indeed, changed! 

TOP 15 STATES IN FAMILY COURT CASES

Here is a list of top-15 states in India where the marital disputes filed year wise were high.

A glance at the above table infer following observations.

• In the top 10 states with high marital dispute cases filed, only 2 – Kerala and Karnataka – are from south India.
• In South, the marital dispute syndrome is clocking fast.
• In north, UP tops the list. Incidentally, Nikita Singhania belongs to Jaunpur , UP.
• In north, data shows family system fast crumbling in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan – 2 conservative states.
• In the indicator of cases per population, Punjab and Haryana topped the north Indian states, which shows family system in terrible shape as discords keep rising.
• Dev bhoomi Uttarakhand doesn’t show up a good state of family affairs.
•  Despite fewer population, the hilly state record high marital dispute cases.
• Odisha, though is marginally below two tribal neighbours – Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, is at 14^th spot in the country with marital dispute cases on rise every year.

SPOTLIGHT ODISHA

As on Dec 1, 2024, the total marital dispute cases filed in the 30 family courts across the State stood at 37,142. Here is a look at the districts in the State that play a big role in rising marital dispute cases.

 A glance at the top-10 contributors in Odisha leads to the following conclusions.

• The syndrome of marital disputes reaching courts for divorce high in the coastal districts.
• Expectedly, State capital Bhubaneswar leads the table.
• But the ranks of Balasore and Nayagarh are eye popping.
• Despite smaller population size, they rank high in the list.
• Though Ganjam is ranked in top 5, the cases are comparably low given the district having the highest population in the State.
• In western Odisha (9 districts), the marital disputes in family courts together stood at 3,722, which is far lower than Bhubaneswar and Balasore.

BOTTOMLINE

The statistics bring to fore the big reason behind rising marital disputes between couples. Data show the cases were in districts that have high literate population and more per capita income. The high literacy plus higher per capita income hint at why the syndrome has grown acute over the years.