SC lets man divorce ‘cruel’ wife, but told to cough up ₹1.5 crore

The Supreme Court allowed a man to divorce his wife on the grounds that she committed cruelty by filing false criminal cases against him, but directed him to pay ₹50 lakh and purchase a house worth ₹1 crore for her.

“It is apparent that the wife made reckless, defamatory and false accusations against her husband, his family members and colleagues, which would definitely have the effect of lowering his reputation in the eyes of his peers,” a bench headed by justice AK Goel said.

However, it added that the court cannot be “oblivious to the requirements of the wife to have a decent house where she can live”. The fact that the wife’s son and daughter-in-law live with her and will continue to do so was a reason cited to grant alimony and provide a residence for her.

The court order came on the husband’s petition assailing the high court and family court’s decision, discarding his plea for divorce on grounds of cruelty.

The couple got married in 1989 and had a son in 1990. They stayed together till 1999 but in March 2000, the husband left the matrimonial home and filed divorce proceedings on the grounds of cruelty, contending his wife lodged false cases of domestic violence and dowry demand against him.

Thereafter the wife filed several petitions against the husband before various forums. A criminal case lodged with the police was closed after the probe revealed no merit in her case.

Reacting to the judgment, senior counsel Vibha Datta Makhija, who represented the woman, said: “We will file a review against the judgment as it sends a faulty message that abdicating husbands can set to naught a life time of emotional and social commitment of a wife to her family and child at a cheap cost.”

She even disputed the SC finding related to cruelty.