'Threatening Suicide To In-Laws & Spouse Is Cruelty': Bombay High Court Rules In 2010 Case

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has ruled in a case that threatening a spouse and their family with imprisonment, particularly by making threats of suicide, constitutes cruelty and can be grounds for divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.

The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court made this observation while upholding a divorce granted to a husband who claimed to have suffered cruelty by his wife.

Justice RM Joshi noted that the act of threatening suicide to implicate the spouse and their family in legal issues is a valid ground for seeking divorce as per a report by India Today.

About The Case

In a case that unfolded following a couple’s marriage in April 2009, the husband sought divorce on the grounds of cruelty. The couple, who had a daughter, faced ongoing issues in their marriage. The husband claimed that his wife's parents frequently interfered in their marital life, and she left her home in October 2010. She left their home without any legal notice. He also alleged that his family was subjected to insults during visits to her parental home, and that his wife made false accusations of abuse against his father, as per reports.

The husband further testified that his wife had repeatedly threatened to commit suicide to him, intending to implicate him and his family in criminal proceedings. He also claimed that she had attempted suicide to threaten them.

The trial court ruled in favor of the husband, granting him a divorce on the grounds of cruelty. This decision was upheld by the appellate court. The wife, dissatisfied with the ruling, then appealed to the Bombay High Court.

Talking about the case, Justice Joshi stated, "Such acts of cruelty by a spouse constitute valid grounds for seeking a divorce."