The Delhi High Court ruled that a wife’s pregnancy or brief reconciliation cannot erase prior acts of mental cruelty. Setting aside the family court decision, the Court granted a divorce to the husband, citing irretrievable marital breakdown.
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NEW DELHI: In a ruling, the Delhi High Court has clarified that a wife’s acts of cruelty toward her husband cannot be overlooked based on her pregnancy or temporary reconciliation. The Division Bench of Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Renu Bhatnagar set aside a 2025 family court judgment and granted divorce to a husband on the ground of mental cruelty under Section 13(1)(ia) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
The High Court noted that the family court wrongly presumed marital harmony due to the wife’s miscarriage in early 2019 and failed to assess the cumulative impact of ongoing abusive behaviour.
“The occurrence of pregnancy or temporary reconciliation cannot erase antecedent acts of cruelty, particularly when the record demonstrates that the Respondent’s abusive conduct, threats, and denial of cohabitation persisted thereafter.”
Background of the Dispute
The husband and wife were married on 1 March 2016. Over the years, the relationship deteriorated, and the husband filed a divorce petition on 24 March 2021, alleging mental cruelty.
He asserted that soon after the wedding, the wife declared that the marriage was against her wishes and that she desired another man. According to him, the wife repeatedly threatened suicide, humiliated him as well as his disabled mother, and insisted that he sever ties with his parents and buy a new house in her name. The husband also claimed that she stopped cohabiting with him in 2019, continuously threatened to lodge false criminal cases, and finally left the matrimonial home on 17 January 2020, taking all her belongings and jewellery.
The wife, meanwhile, denied all allegations and claimed that she was subjected to dowry demands and harassment by her in-laws. She further accused the husband’s father of attempting to molest her. However, the High Court noted that no complaint or FIR was filed at the time of the alleged incidents. Criminal proceedings began only after the divorce case was instituted, casting doubt on the authenticity and timing of the allegations.
What the High Court Held
The Bench held that the cumulative effect of abusive conduct and threats constituted mental cruelty. The Court relied on precedents including Samar Ghosh v. Jaya Ghosh, K. Srinivas Rao v. D.A. Deepa, and Naveen Kohli v. Neelu Kohli.
Key findings:
- Allegations of molestation against the father-in-law destroy the possibility of marital harmony.
- Sustained verbal abuse, refusal to cohabit, desertion, and threats of false criminal cases amount to mental cruelty.
- Belated FIR and dowry allegations raised after the divorce petition undermine credibility.
- The family court erred in invoking the principle of “clean hands” without evidence.
The Bench determined that the couple had been living separately since January 2020, and there was no possibility of reconciliation.
“The dissolution of marriage is not a triumph of one over the other but a legal recognition that the relationship has reached a point of no return.”
The High Court concluded that the marriage had irretrievably broken down and passed a decree of divorce.
The Delhi High Court set aside the family court judgment dated March 20, 2025, and dissolved the marriage by granting a decree of divorce under Section 13(1)(ia) of the Hindu Marriage Act. The Bench further advised both spouses to maintain civility in all future interactions, especially if proceedings relating to maintenance or other ancillary matrimonial issues arise.
Appearance:
For the husband: Advocates SD Dikshit and Anu Tyagi
Case Title:
GAURAV DIXIT versus PRIYANKA SHARMA
MAT.APP.(F.C.) 173/2025
READ JUDGMENT
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