The main findings rely on previous studies and no primary research was conducted due to lack of scope. The conclusions derived in this study are based on secondary research which can make the estimates less reliable since not all research papers have particularly focused on the topic covered for this study, this paper is precisely based on secondary resources only. The researcher has not included all kinds of grounds of divorce, has only focused on cruelty and adultery and has displayed the relevance of the two.

Divorce as a concept was introduced in the Hindu Marriage Act 1955, which describes several theories that have evolved over time. These common theories[2] form the basis of how a married couple dissolves their marriage.

The hindu law proffers any married spouse the right to divorce over the grounds as follows[3]:

Although hindu law does not allow for divorce petition within a year after marriage. According to Section 14, no Court will consider a divorce petition filed within a year of a marriage. But, they may be considered if the issue involves bigamy, cruelty and the spouse's agreement was obtained by deceit, fraud, undue influence, etc.

Adultery is defined as a voluntary physical interaction between two persons who are not in a marital union. Incest can also occur on rare occasions. Adultery is considered terrible and unethicalin Hinduism, to the extent that it is outlawed and penalized. Adultery is described as consensual and voluntary sexual behavior between a married person and another person of the opposite sex, whether or not they are married. If the husband and his second wife's marriage is considered bigamy, their sexual encounters are grounds for adultery. Adultery may not be considered a crime in many countries. Yet, when it comes to marital transgressions, adultery is one of the most serious reasons for divorce, according to the Hindu Marriage Act. Adultery was included as a legal basis for divorce to the Hindu Marriage Act in The Marriage Laws Amendment Act of 1976 incorporated the concept of adultery to the Hindu Marriage Act.

In order to get a divorce on the grounds of Adultery, the following conditions need to be met[4].

In Sadanand Ghose v. Swapna Ghose[5] the wife saw her husband laying on the same bed with another female, and the neighbor also confirmed that the husband had broken the law. In this case, the woman is divorced. Also in the case of Sachindranath Chatterjee v. Sm. Nilima Chatterjee[6] the petitioner and the defendant in this instance were wed. Once they were married, the husband left the woman in his hometown so she could finish her education and go to a different city for employment. He met her two or three times a month. Eventually, he discovered that his wife had engaged in infidelity, having sex with multiple people including his own nephew and their watchman. When the plaintiff went to court to request a divorce based on adultery, his petition was granted, and the marriage was dissolved on such grounds.

If we look at the history of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, we can see that cruelty was only ever used as a justification for judicial separation and never as a basis for divorce. Here, the petitioner or the injured party must demonstrate that the cruelty is so severe or so intolerable that it is becoming difficult for them to continue a relationship with their spouse (the defender). Yet, in the historic Narayan Ganesh Dastane vs. Sucheta Narayan Dastane[7] a decision from 1975, the Supreme Court maintained this. With the addition of a legal definition of the term cruelty under this Act in 1976, this led to an amendment in the Act that introduced cruelty as a basis for divorce. The Court did rule, however, that the subject matter of the case should be the only factor considered by the courts for making a cruelty determination. With the exception of the two phrases "persistently or frequently" that were added, there was no contrast between the reasons of cruelty resulting in judicial separation and the grounds of cruelty resulting in divorce after this act was amended. This amendment significantly increased the weight of establishing cruelty as a basis for divorce over proving it as a basis for judicial separation. This ground was added under Section 10(1) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and now “Cruelty” has a self-contained definition[8].

Both mental and physical cruelty are included in the definition of cruelty. The term "physical cruelty" refers to when one spouse physically harms or beats the other spouse. Nonetheless, the idea of mental cruelty was included since the other spouse can also abuse the other spouse mentally. Lack of compassion that negatively impacts a person's health is known as mental cruelty. Physical cruelty can be easily identified, while mental cruelty is more difficult to identify. Moreover IPC defines cruelty as when the wife is treated in a way that makes her reasonably fear it would be challenging to coexist with the husband. Cruelty covers both physical and emotional abuse. It can be in reference to odd behavior, persistent teasing and taunting, labeling her a barren woman, fanciful criticisms of her chastity, etc, this stands a valid ground of divorce under the Hindu Law in India. Instances when a woman experiences mental cruelty by husband may be when he falsely charges her of adultery, or there is a persistent requirement for dowry, or the husband is impotent. If the child is aborted under duress, there may be an issue of the husband's intoxication, or there may be a cheating husband. The spouse leads a morally dubious existence or husband's unrestrained and aggressive behavior and or he is exposing the wife to humiliation in front of relatives and friends all leads to mental cruelty which can be a valid ground for divorce.

As discussed in the case of Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar[9], herein the petitioner in this case was Sweta Kiran, respondent number 2. The wedding was legally consummated on July 1st, 2007. In the wife's case, the petitioner's relatives had placed significant obligations on her. The petitioner threatened to wed another woman after learning of this truth and when it was brought to his attention. This led to the respondent's expulsion from her marital home as a result of the dowry demand not being met. After his anticipatory bail was denied and he became aware of his impending arrest, the petitioner applied for anticipatory bail by filing a Special Leave Petition with the Supreme Court.

Mental cruelty committed by a wife towards her husband may be in the form of embarrassing the husband in front of his loved ones, carrying out a pregnancy abortion without the husband's approval. A false accusation being made against him. A refusal of a marriage-related physical relationship without good cause, spouse having an affair, immoral wife leading a life, placing an ongoing requirement for money or wife's unrestrained and aggressive behavior and/or the husband's parents and relatives were treated poorly. For instance the case of Balram Prajapati and Susheela Bai, herein the grounds for the petitioner's divorce from his wife were mental abuse. He demonstrated that his wife's behavior towards him and his parents was aggressive and out of control, and that she frequently made up complaints against him. The petition is accepted by the court, and the divorce on the basis of cruelty was granted.

Adultery has been present as a significant part of the hindu religion since ancient times and in many towns in India, this practice is conventionally acceptable. Individuals have “water-wives” - a concept where due to shortage of water a man marries multiple women who can fill water from the nearest sources for their household. So herein the relevance of such laws falls short or it merely persists for the laws sake but society has no belief in it whatsoever. Uneducated individuals of the lower castes who too are unaware of the laws end up in bigamy, and their wives also suffer from cruelty but go unspoken due to societal pressures. Yet, there have been a surge cases of false and exaggerated accusations implicating several relatives of the husband and his family that have been flooding in a rampant way, leading to a widespread acknowledgement of these beneficiary laws as a means to inflict retribution by displeased women. There must be strict regulations regarding how these laws can be dealt with when either of the spouses is claiming the benefits associated from divorce which could be the alimony or maintenance and the grounds on which it is petitioned. The need for increasing literacy would be a plausible solution to the several instances when laws are ignored, not understood or are misused by people especially when it comes to a matter as significant as marriage.

The Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 has a variety of laws concerning divorce. According to the Hindu Marriage Act, "divorce as a dissolution of marriage" is defined. The three fundamental divorce ideas are Fault Theory, Mutual Consent Concept, and Irretrievable Theory. The blame theory is utilised in divorce disputes in India. According to this viewpoint, a marriage may be dissolved if one spouse is found guilty or liable for a crime classified as a marital offense. As a remedy, the innocent spouse is entitled to divorce. The principal causes for divorce for Hindu women, according to the Hindu Marriage Act, include adultery, abandonment, conversion, leprosy, cruelty, and so on. Yet, many philosophers oppose the concept of divorce. Hindu married women may also seek maintenance under current legislation. As a result, the innocent spouse may approach the court and obtain a divorce as a remedy. This paper has explored the grounds for divorce and came across present circumstances with regards to these laws.

CWN 168

SCR (3) 967