What is Divorce ?

Divorce is the legal process of ending a marriage. It dissolves the legal bond between spouses and tackles issues like child custody, division of assets, and sometimes, alimony.

Alimony, also known as spousal support or maintenance, is financial aid provided by one spouse to the other after a divorce. It's intended to help the spouse who may be financially disadvantaged adjust to single life and maintain a comparable standard of living they enjoyed during the marriage.

Here are some key points about alimony:

• It's not automatic - One or both spouses need to request it, and a court decides if it's awarded and how much.

• There are different types - Temporary alimony is for a set period, while permanent alimony can last longer, until remarriage or death.

• The amount is determined by factors like the length of the marriage, income disparity between spouses, and the receiving spouse's ability to become self-supporting.

In India, Hindu marriages are governed by the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HMA). This Act lays out the grounds for divorce and the process for obtaining one.

Here's a breakdown of the key points:

Divorce Grounds: A spouse can file for divorce on various grounds specified in the HMA. These include:

Adultery by the other spouse

Cruelty (physical or mental) by the other spouse

Desertion for a continuous period of two years or more

Conversion of one spouse to a religion other than Hinduism

Mental illness or incurable unsound mind of the spouse

Venereal disease or leprosy of the spouse

Presumption of death of the spouse (after seven years of disappearance)

Living separately for one year or more with mutual consent (introduced in 1976)

Mutual Consent Divorce: This is a faster and less acrimonious way to end a marriage if both spouses agree. The HMA allows for a petition to be filed jointly after a one-year separation.

Irretrievable Breakdown: While not explicitly mentioned in the HMA, the Supreme Court has recognized the concept of irretrievable breakdown of marriage as a ground for divorce in exceptional circumstances.

Cooling-off Period: The HMA discourages hasty divorces. There's a mandatory one-year waiting period after filing for divorce on some grounds before a decree can be granted. Exceptions exist based on the severity of the situations..

THE HINDU MARRIAGE ACT, 1955

Section13. Divorce.—(1) Any marriage solemnized, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, may, on a petition presented by either the husband or the wife, be dissolved by a decree of divorce on the ground that the other party—

1[(i) has, after the solemnization of the marriage, had voluntary sexual intercourse with any person other than his or her spouse; or

(ia) has, after the solemnization of the marriage, treated the petitioner with cruelty; or

(ib) has deserted the petitioner for a continuous period of not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation of the petition; or]

(ii) has ceased to be a Hindu by conversion to another religion; or

2[(iii) has been incurably of unsound mind, or has been suffering continuously or intermittently from mental disorder of such a kind and to such an extent that the petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with the respondent.

Explanation.—In this clause

(a) the expression “mental disorder” means mental illness, arrested or incomplete

development of mind, psychopathic disorder or any other disorder or disability of mind and

includes schizophrenia;

(b) the expression “psychopathic disorder” means a persistent disorder or disability of mind (whether or not including sub—normality of intelligence) which results in abnormally aggressive or seriously irresponsible conduct on the part of the other party, and whether or not it requires or is susceptible to medical treatment; or]

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*

(v) has 3

* been suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form; or

(vi) has renounced the world by entering any religious order; or

(vii) has not been heard of as being alive for a period of seven years or more by those persons who would naturally have heard of it, had that party been alive; 4

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6[Explanation.—In this sub-section, the expression “desertion” means the desertion of the petitioner by the other party to the marriage without reasonable cause and without the consent or against the wish of such party, and includes the wilful neglect of the petitioner by the other party to the marriage, and its grammatical variations and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly.]

7(1A) Either party to a marriage, whether solemnized before or after the commencement of this Act,

may also present a petition for the dissolution of the marriage by a decree of divorce on the ground—

(i) that there has been no resumption of cohabitation as between the parties to the marriage for a period of 8[ one year] or upwards after the passing of a decree for judicial separation in a proceeding

to which they were parties; or

(ii) that there has been no restitution of conjugal rights as between the parties to the marriage for a period of 8

[one year] or upwards after the passing of a decree for restitution of conjugal rights in a

proceeding to which they were parties.]

Refrence: Hindu Marriage Act