Irretrievable breakdown to be ground for divorce

NEW DELHI: The Cabinet will clear amendments to the Hindu Marriage Act on Thursday by including “irretrievable breakdown of marriage” as ground for divorce.

Under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriages Act, which provides for grant of divorce, a decree of divorces for separation can be given only on the grounds such as “cruelty”, “adultery” and “desertion”.

The lack of this provision was recently pointed out by the Supreme Court while hearing a petition filed by Union Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde’s daughter, Smriti Shinde. A 2006 judgement, too, had voiced the need for legislative intervention on the issue.

“We have been principally impressed by the consideration that once the marriage has broken down beyond repair, it would be unrealistic for the law not to take notice of that fact, and it would be harmful to society and injurious to the interests of the parties,” the apex court had said in the 2006 order.

In the 2006 case, one Manju Sharma had “resolved to live in agony only to make life a miserable hell” for the husband. In a creative interpretation, the court treated the wife’s refusal to let go of the husband despite the irretrievable breakdown as an instance of mental cruelty on her part. “This type of adamant and callous behaviour leaves no manner of doubt in our mind that the respondent is bent upon treating the appellant with mental cruelty,” the court said while granting divorce on the ground of “irretrievable breakdown”.

In its 71st report submitted in 1978, the Law Commission had recommended introduction of breakdown of marriage as a ground for divorce in addition to “fault” grounds in the divorce law. In 1981, a Bill was introduced to give effect to “irretrievable breakdown” as a ground for divorce, but it did not find acceptance as some were of the view that unscrupulous husband would desert their wives by taking advantage of this provision.