Indian Laws Relating to Cruelty as Ground for Divorce

Although cruelty is mentioned as one of the major grounds for divorce, Indian laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act and the Special Marriage Act do not define it clearly. Various court judgments have led to the interpretation of the term ‘mental cruelty’ and its grounds for seeking divorce in India.

Indian Laws and SC Judgment on Instances of Mental Cruelty

In a significant judgment delivered on March 26, 2007, in the case of Samar Ghosh v.  Jaya Ghosh 2007, the Supreme Court held that there cannot be any comprehensive definition of the concept of “mental cruelty,” given the wide spectrum of human behavior.  Indian laws recognize the scope of mental cruelty.

Cruelty was held to differ from person to person depending on upbringing, sensitivity, education, family and cultural background, financial position, social status, customs, traditions, religious beliefs and value systems.

Several instances of human behavior are relevant for defining the term mental cruelty and can be used for seeking divorce.

Listed below are some such instances that can result in mental cruelty:

• A husband undergoing sterilization without medical reason and without the consent or the knowledge of his wife.
• A wife undergoing abortion without medical reasons or without the consent or knowledge of the husband
• Unilateral decision of refusal to have intercourse for a considerable period without any physical incapacity or valid reason.
• Unilateral decision of either partner not to have a child
• Acute mental pain, agony and suffering that prevent the partners to stay with each other.
• Feeling of deep anguish, disappointment, frustration in a spouse caused by the conduct of the other over a long time
• Sustained abusive and humiliating treatment to torture or render miserable the life of a spouse can amount to mental cruelty.
• Sustained unjustifiable conduct affecting the physical and mental health of the spouse. However, the treatment complained about and resultant apprehension must be very grave.
• Sustained reprehensible conduct, neglect, indifference or total departure from the normal standard of conjugal kindness, causing injury to mental health or deriving sadistic pleasure can amount to mental cruelty.

Instances which do not amount to cruelty:

• Mere coldness of manner or lack of affection cannot amount to mental cruelty. However, if this happens frequently it could make married life intolerable.
• Jealousy, selfishness, and possessiveness which cause unhappiness, dissatisfaction and a state of being emotionally upset are not grounds for divorce.
• Trivial irritations, quarrels and normal disputes are not adequate grounds for mental cruelty.

Let’s not forget that the concept of cruelty is dynamic and changes with passage of time and the impact of culture. It is also important that a court takes into account all the factors that led to a particular decision or behavior by a spouse before terming it as mental cruelty and identifying it as a ground for granting divorce.