Wife's aggressive behaviour, sad mood no grounds for divorce: HC

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana high court has held that "mere aggressive behaviour and sadness of mood of wife" does not mean that the wife is spoiling the atmosphere of her matrimonial home.
HC has also observed that it is essential for the party to prove that a particular conduct or behaviour has resulted into cruelty to him or her.
"The aggrieved party has to make specific case that the conduct of the spouse had caused cruelty to him/her.It is for the Court to weigh the gravity of alleged cruelty. It has to be seen whether the conduct was such that no reasonable person would tolerate it," the court has mentioned in its order.
Division bench comprising Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain and Justice Harnaresh Singh Gill of the HC has passed these orders recently while dismissing an appeal filed by a resident of Mahendergarh district in Haryana against the order passed by family court Mahendergarh denying him divorce from his wife on the ground of mental cruelty and adultery.
In this case, the husband was seeking divorce on the grounds that grounds of mental cruelty and adultery.
The couple was married on March 9, 2015 as per Hindu rites and ceremonies. As per the allegations of husband, the wife always imbibed with independent and modern thoughts posing herself to be a broad minded woman.
It was claimed that right from the next day of marriage, she started quarrelling with the appellant and his parents and threatened them to do everything under her command. According to husband, she flatly refused to perform household work and alleged that if she was compelled to do so, she would commit suicide and create problems for appellant and his family members.
Allegations also included that she was in the habit of leaving matrimonial home without informing the appellant husband and his family members and on asking, she used to say that nobody was allowed to interfere in her personal life.
The husband also claimed that his wife had adulterous relationship with a person.
Contesting the plea, wife denied all charges and submitted that she had ever raised her voice, rather asserted that she had followed all the social and religious customs in her matrimonial home.
"It was the appellant (husband) and his parents, who harassed her physically and mentally and used to call a Tantrik for doing black magic upon her," argued the wife. She also said that she used to prepare the food for the appellant and his family members at proper time and used to serve the guests as well.
Hearing both the parties, the HC observed that in the present case there is ordinary wear and tear of the married life of the parties, which happens in day-to-day life
"Thus nuptial knots cannot be allowed to be broken on these types of unfounded allegations of cruelty, physical or mental," observed the HC while dismissing husband’s plea for divorce.
HC held that no cogent evidence has been placed on record that the behaviour of wife is uncalled for. Regarding charges of adultery, the HC observed that the same had not been proved because the other person (with whom the wife alleged to have been in relationship) had not been arrayed as party in the divorce petition.
"As a matter of fact adultery cannot be considered without impleading the alleged adulterer. Rather unsubstantiated and uncorroborated testimony associating the respondent with adulterer has caused mental cruelty to the respondent (wife)," held the HC.