KOCHI: The High Court has held that a wife’s demand for a separate residence away from the husband’s family, without sufficient reason, by itself constitutes an act of cruelty. The court made the observation while allowing an appeal filed by a husband challenging a Family Court order that refused to grant him a divorce. The couple got married on May 14, 2015.
The Family Court had dismissed the husband’s plea, observing that there was no serious dispute between the spouses and that the wife’s only grievance was the interference caused by her mother-in-law.
At the time of the marriage, the husband was working in Dubai as an engineer. A week after the wedding, the couple moved to Dubai and began their married life in a rented residence where the husband’s parents were also staying. During the seventh month of her pregnancy, the wife returned to Kerala, where she gave birth to a baby girl.
The husband alleged that, despite his repeated requests, the wife refused to return to Dubai and was unwilling to communicate with him directly. Instead, all communication was routed through her brother. The HC observed that it was undisputed that the parties had been living separately for the past nine years. Holding that the Family Court’s findings were liable to be set aside, the HC granted a decree of divorce.