Bhubaneswar: Marriages are considered bliss, earlier. It seems the societal trend has changed a lot.
Nowadays, the pace with which the marital disputes are leading to filing up of divorce petitions in family courts seems as if it is being re-branded as marriages are a curse, now.
As per data available with Union Law Ministry, 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 have risen 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.
In such a backdrop, Allahabad HC has refused to grant divorce decree filed by the Husband on the plea that his estranged wife is consuming alcohol.
The Allahabad HC bench observed that – “consuming alcohol by itself does not amount to cruelty, if it is not followed by unwarranted and uncivilized behavior. Though, consuming alcohol in middle-class society is still a taboo and not a part of culture, however there is no pleadings on record to show as to how consuming of alcohol has caused cruelty to the husband/appellant.”
The appellant husband has pleaded before the bench of Allahabad HC that his estranged wife consumed alcohol during pregnancy, which amounts to cruelty.
ONUS OF PROVING CRUELTY LIES ON APELLANT
As per the HC order, the burden to prove cruelty lies on the appellant, since no specific incidents were cited showing change in behavior of the wife that could amount to cruelty, therefore the divorce decree cannot be allowed.
On the appellant’s pleadings that the wife consumed alcohol during pregnancy; the HC bench observed the following.
“The allegations of consumption of alcohol during pregnancy by the appellant were not proven as there was nothing that showed neither any signs of weakness in the child nor other medical ailments detected.
HOW HC ALLOWED DIVORCE DECREE THEN?
The Allahabad HC bench, however, allowed the divorce decree filed by the Husband on the following grounds.
The HC bench said, “Since the wife has willfully neglected the husband that legally constituted as ’desertion’ under section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act. The wife has willfully ignored summons sent by family court and HC, therefore, the marriage between the parties is beyond repair. Hence, divorce decree allowed.
