Divorce on the ground of adultery, cruelty and desertion. Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Section 13—Divorce on the ground of adultery, cruelty and desertion—Appeal by the husband impugning dismissal of petition—In the context of the facts noted above where marriage between the parties was solemnized in 1992 and had not evidenced any other or earlier criminal case lodged by the respondent and further, in face of the settlement reached between them, whereby the parties were in any case living separately, the criminal case lodged by the respondent alleging serious offence (in the context of matrimonial relationship existing between the parties), did constitute an act of cruelty—To the extent that case was found to be false, the cruel behaviour alleged was proven—In the totality of facts and circumstances noted abo...

(A) Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order 1 Rule 10 and Section 151—Hindu Marriage Act, 1955—Section 13(1)(i) & (i-a)—Adultery and Cruelty—Adulterer—Necessary party—Impleadment of—Application of wife rejected by Family Court—If adultery is not the ground for divorce, the adulterer is not a necessary party—Impleading adulterer not required if not a ground for divorce—The wife without having any proof or foundation defamed the husband and his family members—The he said conduct of the wife comes within the ambit of cruelty—Defamation of spouse and family can be considered as cruelty—No interference with Family Court's decision to reject application of wife to implead adulterer as a party—The petition being sans merit, is hereby dismissed. (Para 12 to...

(A) Adultery—Hindu Marriage Act, 1955—Section 13 (1) (i-a)—Evidence Act, 1872—Section 112—Divorce decree—Passed by Family Court—On ground of cruelty—Appeal against—Determination of—Wife had declined to subject herself and child for D.N.A. test—Adverse inference was drawn against her—It was concluded that husband proved the case of adulterous behavior of wife—DNA Test cannot be used as a short cut to establish assertion of infidelity—High Court finds it difficult to discharge presumption under Section 112 of Evidence Act—Husband also failed to provide name and address of person with whom wife had been in relationship—No prima facie case is made out by husband—Which would justify a direction to conduct a DNA test and in no circumstances, ad...

Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Section 13(1)(i-b)—Dissolution of marriage—Adulterer—As a necessary party—Impleadment of—The husband has brought a suit for divorce on the ground of adultery against the wife then it becomes necessary to bring on record the person who is also a partner in crime with the wife and to determine the dispute in his presence—The adulterer’s presence for effectually and complete adjudication to settle all the questions involved in suit is necessary—Held, an adulterer is a proper party in a suit for divorce on the ground of adultery and his presence is necessary for complete and final decision on the question involved in the dispute.  (Para 5 to 7)   ...

(A) Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 Section 13(1)(i-a)—Hindu Marriage (Punjab) Rules, 1956, Rule 10—Divorce—Cruelty—Maintainability of appeal after the death of a spouse—Held, Yes—Even after death of the husband during pendency of appeal as decree of divorce passed in his favour during his lifetime on ground of adultery would determine her status as wife of respondent (deceased husband) and also going to effect her right to succeed to his property as his wife.   (Para 11) (B) Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 Section 13(1)(i-a)—Hindu Marriage (Punjab) Rules, 1956, Rule 10—Divorce—Cruelty and Adultery—Adulterer—Party to the divorce proceeding—Held, Spouse alleging adultery, has to implead alleged adulterer as a party and in absence of adulterer as a co-respondent, plea of adulte...

Constitution of India, 1950 - Article 32—Petitioner sought a writ of mandamus to investigate cases of adulteration by certain individuals in the petroleum distribution business and to transfer cash subsidies to beneficiaries via Aadhar cards or public distribution systems—The court allowed the petitioner to implead certain individuals and conducted an inquiry, but the matter ultimately pertained to factual determinations best handled by oil companies—The court disposed of the case, stating that it was not inclined to keep it pending further. ...

Constitution of India, 1950 - Article 14, Article 15, Article 21, Article 32—Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) - Section 497 —Petitioner challenged the constitutionality of Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 198(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which deal with adultery—Previous judgments had upheld the validity of these provisions—The petitioner argued that they were archaic and discriminatory—The Supreme Court decided to refer the matter to a Constitution Bench, considering societal progress, gender equality, and affirmative rights for women. ...

(A) The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Sec.9—Application filed under—Allowing of—Justification of—The appellant-husband having alleged that since the wife was living in adultery, he was justified in staying away from her company—However, such allegation not been proved by the appellant-husband—Since it being the husband, who had refused to live together with the wife, Family Court justified in allowing the application for restitution of conjugal rights.(Para - 10) (B) The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Sec.9—Restitution of conjugal rights under—Application for—Filing of, by the wife—Allowing of, with direction to wife to rejoin husband—Justification of—Family Judge having overlooked the fact that the petition for restitution of conjugal rights was filed by the wife, and not ...

Hindu Marriage Act, 1955—Section 13, Section 13(1)—In this case, the issue at hand involved a dispute over the paternity of a child in the context of an adultery claim under Section 13(1)(ii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955—The respondent husband made allegations of infidelity against his wife and sought a DNA test to establish whether he was the biological father of the child—The wife’s fidelity was disputed, and the husband named another individual as the possible father. Evidence Act, 1872—Section 112, Section 114—The Court examined the applicability of Section 112 of the Indian Evidence Act, which presumes the legitimacy of a child born during marriage—While acknowledging that DNA testing could potentially disprove this presumption, the Court emphasized that such testing should only b...

Penal Code, 1860 (IPC)—Section 34, Section 341, Section 386, Section 497, Section 498A—Special Leave Petitions arising from a judgment of the Andhra Pradesh High Court. The High Court had quashed proceedings against accused Nos. 5, 6, and 9 but declined to interfere in favor of accused No. 8. The complainant and accused No. 8 filed separate petitions. The Court dismissed the petitions filed by the complainant (SLP (Crl.) Nos. 2450/2010 and 3856/2010) as lacking merit. However, in SLP (Crl.) No. 648/2010 filed by accused No. 8, the Court granted leave and quashed the proceedings against her. The allegations in the complaint were found insufficient, and the Court emphasized the immunity of women under Section 497 of the Penal Code. The appeal was allowed. ...

Penal Code, 1860 (IPC)—Section 392, Section 497, Section 498—Adultery and confers prosecutorial rights exclusively to husbands—The petitioner argued that the provision violates Article 14 by discriminating against women and Article 21 by denying affected parties the right to be heard—The Court held that Section 497, although restricting prosecution to men, does not contravene constitutional provisions—It underscored that legislative amendments to widen the scope of adultery remain within the realm of Parliament—The Court also emphasized the availability of civil remedies for adultery under family law—Given the petitioner's prior divorce on grounds of desertion, the Court quashed the complaint against her paramour under Section 497—The writ petition was dismissed, with no costs awarded. ...

Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 - Section 13(1)(i)—Married woman does not alone prove an illicit relationship— The content of the letters and intrinsic evidence may indicate that any feelings were not necessarily reciprocated— Under Section 28(1)(b) and 10(1)(f) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, prior to the 1976 amendment, mere cohabitation following the discovery of adultery is insufficient to confirm forgiveness unless more substantial evidence is provided— In cases seeking judicial separation, cohabitation by the husband with the wife after learning of her adultery, as seen between May/June and October 1958 in this case, may constitute condonation— This continued cohabitation, particularly if done at the behest of others, can indicate effective forgiveness and acceptance of the wife despite the previous adulterou...

Constitution of India, 1950—Articles 14 and 15(3)—Validity of Section 497—Adultery—Special Provision for Women—The appellant challenged the constitutionality of Section 497 IPC, which criminalizes adultery by men but exempts women from punishment as abettors, claiming it violates Articles 14 (equality before law) and 15 (prohibition of discrimination based on sex)—The Supreme Court upheld the validity of Section 497, holding that the provision falls within the ambit of Article 15(3), which allows the State to make special provisions for women—The Court reasoned that sex is a permissible classification under Article 14, and the exemption of women from punishment does not constitute a violation of equality but is a special provision meant for their protection—The appeal was dismissed. ...