Delhi High Court Upholds Divorce, Says Wife’s Desertion and FIRs Constitute Cruelty

The Delhi High Court has held that a wife’s persistent absence from the matrimonial home, combined with subsequent filing of multiple complaints against her husband and his family, amounts to cruelty under Section 13(1)(ia) of the Hindu Marriage Act.

The Court noted that all three FIRs by the wife were lodged after the husband initiated divorce proceedings, and that her conduct reflected “a continuous and deliberate pattern … causing mental suffering.”

The Court dismissed the wife’s appeal, affirming the Family Court’s decree of divorce.