'Law Can't Compel To Endure A Marriage Of Suffering': Orissa High Court Grants Divorce To Man Against Whom Wife Registered 45 FIRs

The Orissa High Court recently granted divorce to a couple on the ground of cruelty while noting the conduct of the wife in filing numerous frivolous criminal cases against the husband, attempting to oust his elderly parents from her matrimonial home and repeatedly threatening to commit suicide, which caused grave emotional and psychological distress to the husband.The Division Bench of Justice Bibhu Prasad Routray and Justice Chittaranjan Dash remarked that repeated threats given by wife to commit suicide is indeed a form of cruelty and held –“Repeated threats to commit suicide, or worse, to harm the spouse and their family members, transcend mere emotional outbursts, they represent a gross misuse of emotional vulnerability and a blatant form of psychological warfare. The effect of such behaviour is not just confined to the four walls of the matrimonial home but leaves a lasting scar on the mental health and emotional stability of the aggrieved spouse.”Case BackgroundThe marriage between the appellant-wife and the respondent-husband was solemnised on 11.05.2003. After remaining in matrimonial relations for some years, their marriage became strained. The husband alleged that the wife put pressure on him to sever ties with his parents, demanded financial control by insisting on being the sole nominee in his insurance policies, and frequently engaged in quarrels. The husband subsequently filed an application for divorce under Section 13(1)(i-a) of the Hindu Marriage Act ('the Act') on the ground of cruelty, where he alleged that his wife's conduct had made it impossible for him to continue with the marriage. To counter the husband's claim, the wife filed an application under Section 9 of the Act seeking restitution of conjugal rights. The Judge, Family Court, Cuttack, allowed the prayer for divorce holding that the wife's conduct amounted to mental cruelty under Section 13(1)(i-a) of the Act. It also observed that her persistent behaviour of quarrelling, financial control, acts of intimidation against the parents of the husband and forcibly ousting them with the help of goons are significant acts of cruelty. Being aggrieved, she filed this appeal before the High Court.Court's ObservationsIt was contended for the wife that the Family Court erred in holding the legal proceedings initiated by the wife against the husband as mental cruelty. It was contended that filing of multiple cases cannot amount to mental cruelty as it is her legitimate right to seek legal remedies. While discarding such contention, the Court observed that while mere filing of cases may not always constitute cruelty, when the legal process is abused to cause constant harassment and mental agony, it turns into mental cruelty. “In the instant case, where the Appellant has filed over 45 FIRs along with numerous civil and criminal proceedings against the Respondent and his family, the same principle applies here too. Such a high volume of cases reflects a pattern of vexatious litigation rather than a genuine pursuit of justice. The frequency and nature of these cases go beyond a reasonable exercise of legal rights and instead demonstrate a calculated effort to exert pressure and inflict mental agony upon the Respondent.”The Court further noted that the husband tendered his resignation from a high-paying job with TCS on August 30, 2024, explicitly citing his wife's repeated interruptions in his day-to-day work life as the sole reason for his resignation. This resignation, the Bench said, serves as crucial evidence of the sustained harassment faced by the husband, extending beyond the confines of the matrimonial relationship and into his career and livelihood.It was further noted that the wife often abused her in-laws and even physically assaulted her husband on numerous occasions. Once the husband sustained facial and nasal injuries and, in another instance, he got a scalp laceration as she struck him with a speaker of music system. Not only the aforesaid, but also she proceeded on to physically assault her mother-in-law and even locked her parents-in-law outside their own house.“It has to be noted that marriage is a partnership where both individuals are expected to nurture the bond with compassion and patience, even in times of disagreement or hardship. However, when one partner resorts to repeated threats of self-harm or violence, the very foundation of this sacred bond is shattered, giving rise to a climate of fear and emotional torment. While an attempt to commit suicide is an act of desperation, a repeated threat to do so is a calculated act of manipulation, often deployed to exert psychological control over the other spouse.”The Court viewed the threats given by the wife for committing suicide with all seriousness and said that the repeated threat of suicide or violence is not merely misconduct, rather it is an insidious form of emotional blackmail and psychological oppression. Such conduct crosses the boundaries of personal conflict and...

'Law Can't Compel To Endure A Marriage Of Suffering': Orissa High Court Grants Divorce To Man Against Whom Wife Registered 45 FIRs

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'Law Can't Compel To Endure A Marriage Of Suffering': Orissa High Court Grants Divorce To Man Against Whom Wife Registered 45 FIRs

Jyoti Prakash Dutta

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