Delhi High Court: Financial Instability Can Be Mental Cruelty, Grants Divorce to Wife
The Delhi High Court has ruled that financial instability in a marriage can be considered mental cruelty, especially when it causes stress and distress to a spouse. The court made this observation while granting divorce to a woman whose husband was financially unstable and allegedly indulged in harmful activities.
Financial Struggles Can Cause Mental Cruelty
A division bench of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna noted that if a husband fails to establish himself in a stable profession or business, leading to financial instability and even violence, it can cause severe anxiety for the wife. This, the court ruled, qualifies as mental cruelty.
“The respondent (husband) was unable to sustain himself financially. Such instability, along with his involvement in other vices, led to mental distress for the appellant (wife). The term ‘mental cruelty’ is broad enough to include financial instability,” the court stated.
Case Background
The case involved a woman who challenged a family court’s decision rejecting her divorce plea. The couple got married in 1989 but separated in 1996.
The woman, a Delhi University graduate working in a multinational company, was led to believe that her husband was also a graduate with a stable income. However, she later discovered that he had no degree and was financially dependent on his mother.
She alleged that he was involved in gambling and other harmful activities, often resorting to violence. She suffered two pregnancies—one ended in miscarriage, and the other was a stillbirth. She claimed that she received no care or support from her husband.
Long-Term Separation and Financial Disparity
The court acknowledged that while the woman had accused her husband and his family of dowry harassment and physical abuse, there was insufficient evidence to prove these claims. However, it noted that the core issue in the marriage was financial disparity.
With the couple living separately since 1996 and no efforts at reconciliation for 27 years, the court concluded that the absence of companionship and marital intimacy itself amounted to mental cruelty.
“The fact that the couple has been apart for nearly three decades without any reconciliation shows the marriage is unsustainable. The lack of a conjugal relationship is itself a form of mental cruelty,” the court observed.
Divorce Granted on Grounds of Cruelty and Desertion
Considering the financial instability, long-term separation, and mental distress faced by the wife, the court overturned the family court’s decision and granted her a divorce on the grounds of cruelty and desertion.
This ruling reinforces that financial security is an important aspect of marriage and that prolonged financial instability, leading to mental distress, can be a valid reason for divorce.
Be a part our social media community:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndianMan.in?mibextid=ZbWKwL
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/indianman.in?igsh=MWZ2N3N0ZmpwM3l3cw==
