Grounds of Divorce

Adultery

Ø   It is a ground of divorce in which either party has, after solemnization of marriage, had voluntary sexual intercourse with any person other than his or her spouse.

Ø   In Virupani v/s Smt Sarojani, it was held that the petition for divorce on the grounds of adultery field after 8 years, after the knowledge of adultery, can be refused.

Ø   In Santa Kumar v/s Sudershan, it was held that adultery committing rape on wife is not adultery by wife. The act of sexual intercourse must be voluntary, rape is involuntary act.

2. Cruelty :

 It is a ground of divorce in which other party has, after solemnization of marriage, treated the petitioner with Cruelty.

 There is no precise definition of cruelty, it depends upon the facts of the case.

 The concept of Cruelty includes conduct induct or such character as to have caused danger to life, limb or health, bodily or mentally or reasonable apprehension of such danger.

 Cruelty includes both – physical as well as mental harassment.

3 Desertion

Under most of the Indian Statutes, Desertion is a ground of divorce.

 

 Desertion means rejection of one party of all the obligations of marriage, it is nothing but permanent abandonment of one spouse by the other without any reasonable cause and without the consent of other.

4 Conversion

 Religion is very sensitive and personal aspect of individual’s life and constitution of India guarantees freedom of conscience and religion to people of all denomination.

 Thus a person is free to profess any faith or relinquish and convert to another religion.

 Conversion of a spouse gives to the non-convert spouse, a ground for matrimonial relief.

5 Fraud 

When 2 persons enters into a marriage alliance, it is presumed that they have consented to the relationship either personally(major) or through their guardians(minor).

 In other words Free Consent is a sine qua non for a valid marriage.

 A person who is deceived, gives his consent under misconception of facts induced by other part, then it is a ground for divorce.

6. Bigamy

Except of Islam, all personal law statutes in the country impose monogamy as a rule and any marriage performed in contravention of the provision imposing monogamy is illegal.

 In fact,  such marriages are void.

 Apart from that, the guilty is also liable to be punished under the penal law.

7. Impotency

 Impotency is the lack or absence of capacity to consummate a marriage by an act of normal, natural and complete intercourse.

 A person is impotent if his or her physical or mental condition makes sexual intercourse and consequently of marriage is practically impossible.

8 Insanity 

That the other party has been incurably of unsound mind or has been suffering continuously or intermittently from mental disorder of such a kind and to such an extent that the petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with the Respondent.

9 Leprosy

  

While matrimonial law cannot take notice of every kind of physical abnormality as affording a ground for relief, there are certain serious diseases which it could take into account for divorce.

10 Veneral Disease

 Veneral disease must be in a communicable form.

 It comprise a number of contagious disease that are mostly commonly acquired in sexual intercourse including Gonorrhea.

 AIDS

11. Non – Resumption of Cohabitation after Decree of Separation :-

  

 It is a ground of divorce under various statutes.

In fact when parties have not been able to resume marital life, it is desirable to treat the relation beyond repair.

12. Non-compliance of Decree of Restitution of Conjugal Rights :-

 

No restitution of conjugal rights for a period of one year or more after a restitution decree is a ground for divorce.

13 Pre – Marriage Pregnancy of Wife

       The fact that the wife is  at the time of marriage, pregnant by some person other than the petitioner husband is a ground for matrimonial relief under most of the family statues in India.

14 Mutual Consent

 

 Fault or Ground- based matrimonial litigation is time consuming and expensive.

 It also involves lot of mud-slinging thereby further embittering the relationships and thwarting prospects of amicable resolution of ancillary issues like maintenance, child custody, etc. 

 3 basic requirements to be fulfilled:

     a) The parties have been living separately for a period of at least

         one year,      

     b) They have not been able to leave together, and

     c) They have mutually agreed to have the marriage dissolved.

         

15. Renunciation                                                                                                                                   

 A person may renounce the world such as when he does not take any interest in the world affairs or retires to a single room.

16 Disappearance

17 Sentence of Imprisonment

The fact that the respondent is undergoing a sentence of imprisonment for seven years or more for an offence as defined in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) is a ground of divorce.

18 Irretrievable breakdown of Marriage

The Law Commission of India, in it’s 71st report strongly recommended the introduction of irretrievable breakdown of marriage – as a ground of divorce.

 Court are inclined to dissolve a marriage, where there appears to be no chance of the parties living happily in the relationship.

19     Rape / Sodomy / Bestiality

A wife can seek divorce also on the ground that since the solemnization of the marriage, the husband has been guilty of rape or sodomy or bestiality.

20 Repudiation of Marriage 

This ground available to wife alone is the repudiation of marriage after attaining the age 15, but before attaining the age of 18.