RAIPUR: In a matrimonial dispute, the Chhattisgarh high court has held that the pledge of ornaments kept for the marriage of a daughter, without knowledge of husband, would amount to cruelty.

Dissolving a marriage by decree of divorce, a division bench of Justice Goutam Bhaduri and Justice N K Chandravanshi said, “We are inclined to hold that parting with the ornaments by pledging without knowledge of husband, which was meant for the marriage of daughter, and further the unsubstantiated allegations levelled by the wife, assassinating the character of the husband, would amount to mental cruelty to husband.”

Therefore, the marriage deserves to be and is hereby dissolved by a decree of divorce on the ground stated in the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, the order said.

The high court, in its order, said: “Cruelty may be physical or mental. Mental cruelty is the conduct of a spouse which causes mental suffering or fear to the matrimonial life of the other spouse. Pledging the ornaments meant for the marriage of the daughter would certainly cause apprehension and fear and create financial pressure on the mind of the father as we cannot also forget the hard reality which exists in society to present a girl during the marriage with ornaments.”

The order added, “Consequently, if a spouse by her own conduct, in such a way without caring about the future of the daughter, parts with the ornaments meant for the marriage, it will be within the ambit of mental cruelty by the wife.”

With regard to the alleged extramarital affair of the husband, the HC noted that it did not find any reliable evidence on the record as the wife's statement is inconsistent.

“It is obvious that to suffer an allegation pertaining to one’s character — of having an extramarital affair — is quite torturous for any person… Inconsistency in the statement and only allegation of an extramarital affair is raised by the wife casually against the husband, it certainly has a bad impact on the image of a person in society, therefore, it would amount to mental cruelty,” the order said.

The 46-year-old husband, a railway guard, had moved high court to challenge a family court order rejecting his application for divorce on the ground of cruelty and desertion.

He said that he and his wife married in 1986 and stayed together till September 2011 when she “deserted him without any lawful cause”.

He also alleged that his wife had taken several loans, adding up to Rs 10-12 lakh without his knowledge, even by pledging ornaments meant for the wedding of their daughter to different creditors.

His wife, on the other hand, alleged that he had an affair outside of marriage, which amounted to cruelty. She also alleged that she was tortured for dowry and forced to leave the matrimonial house.

The husband’s counsel, Shailendra Bajpai, submitted in court that there is evidence that the wife pledged ornaments they had procured for the marriage of their daughter to creditors without the knowledge of her husband.

He submitted that this act by itself would amount to cruelty as the faith between the husband and wife was broken. The allegation of an affair was never proven, he argued, adding that the husband was entitled to divorce.