Introduction
The Rajasthan High Court has held that a husband obtaining an ex-parte divorce decree from a foreign court without informing his wife amounts to mental cruelty under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The Court emphasized that matrimonial relief must reflect real marital breakdown, not mere technicalities.
Legal Issue
The husband’s reliance on a foreign ex-parte divorce decree failed. The Court not only refused to recognise the decree but also treated the act as cruelty against the wife.
Case Title
NM v AK
Case Background
The parties married in 2010 and later moved to the United States. The wife alleged that she was subjected to cruelty and harassment by the husband, including his alleged illicit relationship. She returned to India in 2013, and the couple lived separately thereafter.
In 2015, the husband obtained an ex-parte divorce decree from a court in California without informing the wife. She became aware of this only in 2018 and subsequently filed for divorce in India, citing cruelty and irretrievable breakdown of marriage.
The Family Court rejected her plea, stating that irretrievable breakdown is not a statutory ground under Section 13 of the Act.
Petitioner’s Stance
The wife argued that the husband’s act of secretly obtaining a foreign divorce decree without notice caused mental cruelty. She also contended that the marriage had irretrievably broken down, with no possibility of reconciliation.
Court’s Ruling
The bench comprising Justice Arun Monga and Justice Sunil Beniwal set aside the Family Court’s decision and granted divorce.
The Court held that the husband’s unilateral act of dissolving the marriage abroad clearly reflected his intention to end the relationship and caused shock and mental cruelty to the wife.
It further observed that compelling parties to remain in a dead marriage would itself amount to cruelty, aligning with principles laid down by the Supreme Court.
Foreign Decree Not Recognised
The Court refused to rely on the foreign divorce decree. It held that under the Code of Civil Procedure, a foreign judgment can be recognised only if:
1. A certified copy is properly proved
2. The affected party had a fair opportunity to contest the proceedings.
In this case, neither condition was satisfied. The wife was not given notice, had no opportunity to defend, and had not submitted to the jurisdiction of the foreign court.
Irretrievable Breakdown and Cruelty
While irretrievable breakdown is not an explicit ground under the Hindu Marriage Act, the Court noted that forcing parties to continue in a broken marriage can itself constitute cruelty.
It observed that both parties were engaged in prolonged litigation, had no intention to reconcile, and continuing the marriage would only increase emotional hardship.
Final Verdict
The High Court partly allowed the wife’s appeal, dissolved the marriage, and upheld the finding that the foreign ex-parte decree had no legal validity in India. The ruling reinforces that unilateral foreign divorces without due process can amount to cruelty and will not be recognised by Indian courts.
