Ill Treatment Of Children By Spouse Constitutes Cruelty Under Section 10(1) Divorce Act: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has held that the ill-treatment of children by a spouse constitutes mental cruelty towards the other spouse and can be a valid ground for dissolution of marriage under Section 10(1)(x) of the Divorce Act, 1869.The Division Bench comprising Justice Sathish Ninan and Justice P Krishna Kumar, dismissed the wife's appeal against a Family Court judgment granting divorce to the husband on the ground of cruelty, while partly allowing her revision petition seeking enhanced maintenance. The case arose from a marriage solemnized in 2006 under Christian law. The husband, employed at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan, sought divorce alleging that his wife mistreated his two minor children from his first marriage, neglected his ailing father, and subjected the family to continuous harassment. He further claimed that she had attempted suicide and resorted to acts of sorcery against the children.The wife denied the allegations and filed a counterclaim for maintenance, stating that the husband has failed to provide for her. The Court examined whether the ill-treatment of children by one spouse can constitute “cruelty” towards the other spouse within the meaning of Section 10(1)(x) of the Divorce Act, which allows dissolution of marriage if the respondent “has treated the petitioner with such cruelty as to cause a reasonable apprehension that it would be harmful or injurious for the petitioner to live with the respondent.”Relying on Libin Varghese v Rajani Anna Mathew [2022 (5) KLT 448], the counsel for the wife argued that cruelty must be proved in the strict sense of the term used in the Act. He further submitted that the contention raised by the petitioner does not amount to cruelty under the Act. The Bench reaffirmed that the concept of matrimonial cruelty must be uniform across all personal laws. Citing A: Husband v. B: Wife [2010 (4) KLT 434], the Court emphasized that cruelty cannot be defined differently based on religious faith. “Merely because different words are used in the respective personal laws, it was held that identical standards of matrimonial cruelty have to be applied by the courts for all citizens irrespective of the words used in the statute.” the Court observed. The Court held that ill-treatment of children by a spouse naturally causes deep mental anguish to the other parent, thereby creating a reasonable apprehension that cohabitation would be harmful or injurious.“If the wife is guilty of ill-treating the children, certainly it would cause reasonable apprehension in the mind of the husband that it would be harmful or injurious for him to live with her. The expression “harmful or injurious” is not confined to physical acts alone, but equally extends to mental torture,” the Court observed. The Court also took note of the wife's inconsistent statements regarding her alleged suicide attempt, observing that making suicide attempts or threats without reasonable cause constitutes mental cruelty against the spouse.The Court thus upheld the decree dissolving the marriage but found the maintenance of Rs. 6,000 as inadequate and enhanced the amount to Rs. 15,000 per month. Case Title: Emilda Varghese @ Rajani v Varghese P Kuriakose and connected casesCase No: Mat Appeal 596/ 2019 and connected cases Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Ker) 630Counsel for Appellant: D G Vipin, Karol Mathews Sebastian AlencherryCounsel for Respondent: Abraham George JacobClick Here To Read/ Download Judgment

Ill Treatment Of Children By Spouse Constitutes Cruelty Under Section 10(1) Divorce Act: Kerala High Court

Anamika MJ

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