The Bombay High Court has ruled that repeated suicide threats by a spouse constitute mental cruelty. Citing long-term separation and emotional distress, the court granted divorce to the husband after a decade-long marital breakdown.
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MUMBAI: In a ruling that reaffirms legal clarity around mental cruelty in marriage, the Bombay High Court has held that repeated threats of suicide by a spouse amount to cruelty under the Hindu Marriage Act. The judgment, delivered by a bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad, resulted in the court granting divorce to a man whose plea was earlier rejected by a family court in 2019.
Case Background
The couple married in 2006 but began living separately in 2012 due to escalating marital discord. In his divorce petition, the husband cited multiple grounds, including:
- Desertion
- Suspicion and distrust
- Repeated suicide threats and attempts by the wife
The family court had initially dismissed his application, prompting him to approach the High Court.
High Court’s Observations
The bench noted that the couple had been living separately for more than a decade, and all attempts at reconciliation had failed. Crucially, the judges emphasized that the family court had overlooked several key instances of cruelty cited by the husband.
The High Court referred to a Supreme Court precedent affirming that suicide threats, when used repeatedly as a tool to manipulate or emotionally coerce a spouse, constitute mental cruelty.
“When such conduct is repeated, whether through words, signs or gestures, it becomes impossible for the other spouse to continue in the matrimonial relationship in a peaceful environment,”
the court observed.
The judges also stated that the allegations of persistent suspicion and suicide attempts reflected the wife’s “conduct towards the husband,” making cohabitation untenable.
Declaring that the marriage had “irretrievably broken down,” the High Court ruled that continuing the relationship would only “perpetuate cruelty” for both parties.
As part of the settlement, the court directed the husband to:
- Pay ₹25 lakh to the wife, and
- Transfer ownership of two residential flats in her name
This would serve as a final and comprehensive settlement between the estranged couple.
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