BENGALURU
The Karnataka High Court has dismissed a divorce petition filed by a man from Belthangady taluk, holding that the wife living separately for a few years cannot, by itself, be treated as desertion. The court observed that mere physical separation, without proof of intent to abandon the marriage, does not constitute grounds for divorce.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Jayant Banerjee and Justice T.M. Nadaf upheld the order of the trial court, which had earlier rejected the husband’s plea seeking dissolution of marriage on the ground that his wife had left him and was residing with her parents. The Bench noted that the wife had consistently stated she bore no ill will towards her husband and that her stay at her parental home could not be interpreted as abandonment.
The court further pointed out that the husband failed to place convincing evidence to establish that the wife had deserted him without reasonable cause. On the contrary, during the trial, it emerged that the wife had gone to her native place with the knowledge and permission of her husband, weakening his claim of desertion.
The petitioner had also alleged that the child born to the wife was not his. However, the Bench observed that the trial court had directed the husband to pay maintenance to both the wife and the child, an order that remained unchallenged. This, the court said, undermined his allegation regarding the child’s parentage.
Further, the wife had approached the Kannur Family Court seeking maintenance, which was granted for the period between 2013 and 2016. The High Court noted that the husband did not contest this maintenance order either, indicating acceptance of the marital and parental relationship during that period.
Taking into account all these aspects, the Bench concluded that there was no justification to interfere with the trial court’s decision. It ruled that the husband had failed to prove desertion or any other legally sustainable ground for divorce.
Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the petition, reiterating that separation alone, without evidence of intent to sever marital ties permanently, cannot be a basis for dissolving a marriage.
