Madhya Pradesh High Court Said Prolonged Refusal of Marital Relations by Wife Can Be Deemed Mental Cruelty, that a spouse’s persistent denial of sexual relations, in the absence of a valid reason or physical incapacity, may constitute mental cruelty and serve as a legitimate basis for divorce.
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Madhya Pradesh: In a landmark judgment, the Madhya Pradesh High Court, led by Justices Sheel Nagu and Vinay Saraf, overturned a 2014 decision of a family court in Bhopal, which had previously denied a man’s request for divorce on the grounds of mental cruelty due to his wife’s refusal to engage in sexual intercourse. The High Court’s ruling underscored the significance of marital intimacy in a relationship, stating,
“We understand that unilateral refusal to have sexual intercourse for a considerable period without any physical incapacity or valid reason can amount to mental cruelty.”
The case in question involved a marriage that had remained unconsummated since its inception on July 12, 2006, until the husband left India on July 28, 2006. The bench noted that the wife’s decision to deny sexual relations for an extended period without a valid reason constituted a unilateral decision, leading to the non-consummation of the marriage. Despite the husband’s claims, the wife did not contest these allegations, leading the court to accept the husband’s contentions as factual.
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The High Court criticized the family court’s earlier ruling, which had concluded that the wife’s refusal to consummate the marriage did not constitute a valid ground for dissolving the marriage. The bench highlighted,
“We are unable to accept the findings of the Family Court in the issue of absence of consummation of marriage or physical intimacy. The Supreme Court has already accepted such an act (of refusing to consummate marriage) of the wife as mental cruelty.”
This judgment by the Madhya Pradesh High Court marks a significant development in the legal understanding of marital relationships and the obligations of spouses towards each other. It emphasizes the importance of physical intimacy in marriage and recognizes the mental anguish that can result from its prolonged denial. The ruling aligns with previous Supreme Court judgments, reinforcing the notion that refusal to engage in sexual relations without a valid reason or physical incapacity can be deemed as mental cruelty and a valid ground for divorce.
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