Can Presume Marriage Has Broken Down If Separation Has Continued For Long & One Of Parties Move Divorce Plea: Punjab & Haryana HC

The Punjab and Haryana High Court observed recently that once the parties have separated and separation has continued for a sufficient length of time and any one of them presents a petition for divorce, it can well be presumed that the marriage has broken down.

"The consequences of preservation in law of the unworkable marriage which has long ceased to be effective are bound to be a source of greater misery for the parties," the Court remarked.

The Bench of Justice Ritu Bahri and Justice Ashok Kumar Verma observed thus as it allowed an appeal filed by the husband against the order of the family court wherein his petition under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act for dissolution of marriage had been dismissed.

The case in brief 

Parties to the marriage got married in November 1990. As per the appellant-husband, the respondent-wife was suffering from incurable mental illness and used to become violent and beat the children mercilessly and even goes to the extent of attacking the appellant.

It was the case of the appellant/husband that the best efforts made by him to get the respondent treated medically did not bear fruits. When the wife deserted the husband without any reason, the Husband filed the plea before the family court.

The wife denied that she was suffering from mental illness and ever physically assaulted the children or husband or ever denied them food. Rather, she alleged that her husband had levelled false allegations against her to get divorced and it was him who forced her to leave the matrimonial home.

The lower court dismissed the husband's plea, and therefore he moved to the High Court. Therein two attempts were made so that the parties comprise the issue among themselves, however, since nothing fruitful came out of it, on their request case was sent back to this Court for adjudication.

Court's observations 

Taking note of the facts of the case, the Court noted that the marriage between the parties had broken down irretrievably for a long and there was no chance of their coming together, or living together again. Further, the Court also opined that not granting a decree of divorce would be disastrous for the parties.

In this regard, the Court stressed that once the parties have separated and separation has continued for a sufficient length of time and any one of them presented a petition for divorce, it can well be presumed that the marriage has broken down.

Against this backdrop, the Court noted that in the instant case, the appellant and the respondent are living separately for the last more than 23 years.

"Firstly efforts were made to resolve the matrimonial dispute through the process of mediation, which is one of the effective modes of alternative mechanism in resolving the personal dispute but the mediation failed between the parties," the Court further observed as it allowed the appeal of the husband.

However, we direct the appellant-husband to make an F.D. of `10 lakhs as permanent alimony in the name of the respondent-wife.

Case title - Som Dutt v. Babita Rani

Citation : 2022 LiveLaw (PH) 153

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