Foisting False Criminal Cases Against Husband Which End In Acquittal Constitutes Mental Cruelty: Andhra Pradesh High Court

The Andhra Pradesh High Court held that the filing of false criminal cases by a spouse, which ultimately end in acquittal, constitutes mental cruelty and is a valid ground for dissolution of marriage.The Court upheld the decree of divorce granted in favour of the husband, observing that while merely filing a criminal complaint does not amount to cruelty, compelling a spouse to undergo criminal prosecution on false allegations culminating in acquittal does.The Trial Judge had rendered a finding of Mental Cruelty against the wife, for the reason of filing criminal cases against the husband and his family members. Examining the instances cited by trial judge, A Division Bench of Justice U. Durga Prasad Rao and Justice G. Ramakrishna Prasad observed:"The instances cited by the learned 1st Additional District Judge, Ongole in the order impugned herein, in no uncertain terms establish that the Appellant acted in a cruel manner and harassed her husband by foisting false cases, which ended in acquittal.In this view of the matter, this Court confirms the findings of the 1st Additional District Judge, Ongole in Divorce Original Petition No.6 of 2004 dated 26.06.2007 to the effect that the actions and conduct of the Appellant-wife towards her husband-Respondent No.1 herein constitutes Mental Cruelty. This Court is of the view that there are no grounds to interfere in the present Appeal."The appeal arose from a decree granting divorce to the husband under Section 10(i) of the Indian Divorce Act, 1869 on the ground of mental cruelty. Challenging the decree, the wife contended that the Trial Court had erroneously treated the filing of criminal complaints against her husband and his family members as constituting mental cruelty.The High Court examined the material relied upon by the Trial Court and noted that the wife had instituted multiple criminal proceedings against the husband. The first case under Section 498-A IPC ended in acquittal. A second prosecution under Sections 498-A and 420 IPC along with Section 3 of the Dowry Prohibition Act was also dismissed. Further, a complaint alleging bigamy was dismissed after being found to be false. The Court also took note of the testimony of the wife's cousin, who deposed that she had demanded Rs. 50,000 from the husband to refrain from implicating him in another false criminal case.Examining the facts of the case, the High Court held that the repeated institution of false criminal proceedings, which ended in acquittal or dismissal, clearly established that the wife had acted in a cruel manner and had harassed the husband. It concluded that such conduct constituted mental cruelty warranting dissolution of the marriage.Finding no infirmity in the Trial Court's conclusions, it affirmed the decree of divorce and dismissed the appeal.Case Title: X v. Y Case No.: C.M.A. No. 563 of 2008Click Here To Read/Download Order

Foisting False Criminal Cases Against Husband Which End In Acquittal Constitutes Mental Cruelty: Andhra Pradesh High Court

Ritika Verma

This is a premium content
Available exclusively to
Our subscribers

INR 1099+GST

Tags

Ritika Verma

Foisting False Criminal Cases Against Husband Which End In Acquittal Constitutes Mental Cruelty: Andhra Pradesh High Court

Ritika Verma

This is a premium content Available exclusively to Our subscribers

INR 1099+GST

Tags

Ritika Verma

This is a premium content
Available exclusively to
Our subscribers