In one particular case, the division bench permitted an appeal for granting a divorce decree in favor of the appealing husband for being tortured by the wife. The appellate judge may question the legality, validity and the propriety of the trial court’s judgment in which it had canceled the suit of the appellant or plaintiff for granting divorce decree of behavior torture and abandonment.Submissions by the AppellantThe appellant-husband may submit that the wife who is the respondent was disrespectful towards his parents and told his mother that meals were to be prepared according to what's on her menu. Another declaration of the appellant could be that the wife of the Respondent had reverted to her parental home within days of marriage and upon repeated requests of her in-laws reverted to her in-laws and that’s when she began cajoling the appellant to live apart.The appellant may state that even after having accepted all her demands, both her attitude and behavior remained unchanged. Matters worsen if the complaint filed by her turns out to be fake; a case in point would be a demand of dowry which, if not met would be the cause of her reverting to her parental home for good never to return to her appellant husband’s house ever again. Hence, in view of the prevailing circumstances, the plaintiff/appellant is likely to seek an of divorce decree on the plea of mental torture and abandonment. The wife of the respondent may deny all allegations and as a matter of fact, plead that she was tortured, the streedhan properties were retained by her in-laws and that the appellant accosted her with threats of divorcing her and remarrying. Besides, she may unequivocally mention her willingness to joining the appellant’s company.ObservationBy perusing the pleadings and depositions, it may turn out that the appellant’s allegations were according to what the depositions of the respondent, his parents, and other relatives were in a fake criminal case for an offense under Sections 498-A and 323 of Penal Code, 1860.An acquittal under Sections 498-A/34 and 323 IPC of the indicted person by the trial judge in regards to the levied charges. Furthermore, it was later noted that the respondent-wife did mention that she was a victim of crass and obscene behavior by both the appellant and the members of his family As and when the respondent-wife is examined, one question, in particular, is asked to the respondent and that is whether the respondent is eager and willing to live together with the appellant. If the answer is a resounding No then clearly the respondent’s allegations were falseand besides, if she was unwilling to live together with the appellant then her very own pleadings are suspect. UpheldIt was upheld that if the wife made any scandalous, vulgar and defamatory statements implicating the appellant’s family members it may cause mental torture to the husband. Besides, it was stated that if the wife fails to provide evidence supporting her unfounded, indecent and defamatory allegations then it would all be the causes of mental torture to the husband.Therefore, if the respondent-wife is unable to prove her scandalous and indecent allegations against the husband’s family and in addition if there is any demand for dowry then it would be a false claim causing mental agony to the husband. Therefore, the appeal for granting the divorce decree favoring the appellant for the dissolution of the marriage among the parties would be permitted.Call 7604047601 for consultation with registered expert divorce lawyers on Vidhikarya.

IntroductionIndeed the only thing constant in this world is change. The lifestyle of Indian society at large has drastically changed in the past couple of years. People are slowly but surely accepting the notion of pre-marital conjugal and live-in relationships. Nonetheless, this altered mindset arguably lacks legal validation and the society does not readily accept it either. In other words, the subject matter is under criticism and a hot topic of discussion.In live-in relationships unlike marriage, a man and a woman remain unmarried but live with each other under one roof that may appear to be a married relationship sans the vow of holy matrimony. In other words, the relationship is more like cohabitation. In the Indian context, however, with the exception of marriage occurring between a man and a woman, all other exotic relationships are deemed illegitimate. People opting for live-in relationships do so to find out whether they are made for or how compatible they are for each other prior to eventually tying the knot. Owing to live-in relationships partners can avert chaotic family disputes and protracted judicial procedures should the couple split at some point in time. Whatever may be the reason, it is exemplified in the conservative society of India where the sanctity of marriage is not to be sacrificed at any cost even in this backdrop couples increasingly are opting for live-in relationships purportedly unto perpetuity rather than marriage. In similar situations, innumerable legal and social issues have cropped up that are debatable topics.Over time there have been reportages of incidents where live-in relationships resulting in the birth of a child have led to vulnerability of the very live-in relationship and therefore it's not within the purview of the law. Partners have flagrantly misused the virtues of the relationship as non-performance of duties and responsibilities are acceptable. Law in India regarding Live-in Relationship There isn’t any specific law in regards to live-in relationships in India. In other words, the relationship hasn’t had any legal validation, recognition or cognizance and therefore not enacted to law laying down the entitlement and obligations of parties as well as their children. A live-in relationship cannot be legally defined and therefore the legal status of connections of that sort is similarly unverified. There aren’t any provisions in the Indian law granting entitlements or obligations to the parties living together. However, the concept of a live-in relationship has been clarified by the court through varied judgments. While the law is yet to clarify the status of the live-in relationships, the entitlements have been granted through interpretation and amendment of the current legislation so that live-in relationships aren’t misused.Suggested Read: https://www.vidhikarya.com/legal-blog/What-is--Live-in-Relationships--and-its-benefits-for-WomenDomestic Violence Act, 2005Unprecedented as it may be in Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (Pwdva), live-in relationships have been acknowledged by the legislature by endowing entitlement and protection to legally unmarried female akin to wife, in a live-in relationship with a male partner akin to a husband, and the entire relationship resembling marriage, but not marriage in essence. While there isn’t any categorical definition of a live-in relationship in the Act nonetheless the courts have the discretion of interpreting it on a case-to-case basis. Hence, the court’s interpretation of the relationship based on the provision is “relationship in the nature of marriage”. PWDA’s provisions are currently applicable to individuals in live-in relationships. Presumably, live-in relationships and nature of marriage are an oxymoron in the sense that live-in-relationships, as alluded to earlier, have had neither the formal recognition nor the legal validation of a marriage and therefore not a marriage at all. Therefore inferences of ‘nature of marriage’ with live-in relationships are obviously inappropriate and not under the purview of a legal marriage. Women, therefore, have a few basic rights of protecting themselves from being abused owing to fraudulent marriages or bigamous relationships.Call 7604047601 for consultation with registered expert divorce lawyers on Vidhikarya.