Kerala High Court Upholds ‘Desperate Outcry of Wife - Dismisses Husband’s Appeal for Divorce”

In a significant ruling, the High Court of Kerala dismissed two appeals from a husband seeking divorce and contesting the decree for restitution of conjugal rights in favor of his wife. The case saw Judges Anil K. Narendran and Sophy Thomas rendering the judgment.

The husband had accused his wife of filing false complaints against him to his employer and legal authorities. He argued that her actions amounted to cruelty and were grounds for dissolving the marriage. He further contended that she had defamed him, thereby jeopardizing his employment.

However, the court rejected these arguments, stating that the wife’s email to the husband’s employer was not a cruel act. “On going through Ext.B12, we could see that it was the outcry of a desperate wife, to live with her husband, after bringing him back to normalcy, and she was seeking assistance of his employer for that purpose,” observed Justice Sophy Thomas. The court further found that there was an admission on the husband’s part that he had sought psychiatric consultation, lending credibility to the wife’s claims.

The court leaned on precedents like Raj Talreja v. Kavita Talreja and Beena M.S v. Shino G. Babu to underline the complexities of what constitutes ‘cruelty’ in matrimonial cases. The judges, however, clarified that the wife’s actions did not fall under this category.

The court upheld the Family Court’s decision, which had found the husband “not eligible to get a decree of divorce,” while the wife was “entitled to get a decree for restitution of conjugal rights.”

This landmark ruling sets a precedent on what may or may not constitute cruelty, potentially impacting future matrimonial cases in the legal system.

Date of Decision: 17 October 2023

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