TS SECOND IN NRI DIVORCES AFTER PUNJAB

Telangana state stands second in the country among non-resident Indians divorcing their wives in courts in the US and the UK where the Hindu Marriage Act is not considered valid.

Dr Tripurana Venkataratnam, chairperson of Telangana State Commission for Women, said, “These men marry in India but divorce their wives in countries where Indian law is not considered. This is very unfair for the women who are left in the lurch in the foreign country.”

She said that the ministry of women and child development had framed standard operating procedures which would provide the affected women legal recourse.

The ministry did not have data on such cases, and a procedure was being drawn up to collate such instances so that a solution could be worked out, Ms Venkataratnam said.

She said that it was found that male respondents were often not available at their addresses due to change of job and residential address, email IDs and other points of contact.

The department wanted that a look-out circular be issued for men, she said.