Forcing wife to quit job constitutes cruelty: Madhya Pradesh High Court
Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has ruled that forcing a wife to leave her job to conform to her husband’s preferences and lifestyle constitutes cruelty, thereby providing grounds for divorce.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Sushrur Dharmadhikari clarified that neither spouse has the right to dictate the other’s employment decisions based on personal choices. The Bench noted that the decision to live together must be mutual and devoid of coercion.
The judgment arose from an appeal filed by a wife against the decision of the Family Court in Indore, which had dismissed her divorce petition on the grounds of insufficient evidence, absence of police complaints, and lack of corroborating witnesses.
The couple married in April 2014, and the wife, employed as an Assistant Manager with LIC Housing Finance Limited since 2017, alleged that her unemployed husband coerced her into leaving her government job and living with him until he secured employment. She claimed this, coupled with mental and emotional harassment, forced her to live separately and seek divorce.
The wife further argued that her husband filed a petition under s. 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act, seeking restitution of conjugal rights, only after she initiated divorce proceedings. She contended that this was a counter-tactic rather than an effort for reconciliation.
The High Court observed that the Family Court had overlooked critical aspects of the wife's testimony, including her allegations of coercion and her earlier request for mutual divorce due to compatibility issues. The Bench also noted that the husband’s refusal to consent to a mutual divorce, despite the wife's clear intentions, amounted to cruelty.
In its order dated November 13, the High Court dissolved the marriage and overturned the Family Court's 2022 decision, granting the appellant a divorce. Advocate Raghvendra Singh Raghuvanshi represented the appellant.
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Man dragged into river by crocodile in Vadodara; search ops underway
Vadodara (PTI): A 22-year-old man was dragged into a river by a crocodile in Gujarat's Vadodara district on Thursday and search operations are currently underway to locate him, a police official said.
The incident took place at 1:30pm when Mithun Vasava, a resident of Kagdipara village, had gone to take a dip in Dev river amid the stifling heat, the official told PTI.
"The crocodile suddenly attacked the man and dragged him into the river. Search operations are currently underway to locate Vasava," the official added.
