Patna: Patna high court has dismissed a man’s appeal seeking divorce from his wife on grounds of alleged adultery and cruelty, holding that merely seeing one’s spouse in “a compromising position” does not by itself establish that she had sexual intercourse with another person.A division bench of Justices Bibek Chaudhuri and Rana Vikram Singh dismissed the miscellaneous appeal filed by the husband seeking divorce. The order was passed on Thursday, and a copy of the judgement became available on Sunday.The bench also upheld the Madhubani family court’s April 4, 2024, order rejecting the husband’s divorce petition.Citing a 41-year-old judgement of the Madhya Pradesh high court, the bench said adultery could be established through circumstantial evidence. However, in the present case, the husband failed to substantiate his allegation of adultery, as there was a gap between seeing his wife in a compromising position and establishing that she had sexual intercourse with him, the bench observed.The bench also noted that no station diary entry (sanha) had been lodged with the local police against the “other person” with whom the woman was allegedly seen in a compromising position.The couple married on July 2, 2006, according to Hindu rites, and had a son four years later.The husband had alleged that his wife subjected him to cruelty by leaving their matrimonial home at her will and having a physical relationship with her brother-in-law, who was the husband of her elder sister. He claimed that he had once seen his wife in a “compromising situation” and objected to it. He further alleged that she finally deserted him on March 30, 2013, taking their son and belongings with her.Counsel for the woman told the court that the husband’s allegation that he had seen her in a “compromising situation” was fictitious and baseless. Instead, he was subjecting her to cruelty by making such allegations, the counsel submitted.The bench was also informed that a local ‘panchayati’ (mediation) had been held to resolve the matrimonial dispute, following which both parties agreed to certain conditions aimed at strengthening mutual confidence and respect.The husband, however, did not adhere to the agreement and filed a divorce case in 2017, the counsel submitted. The family court dismissed the case in 2024, holding that there was no evidence of adultery or cruelty against the wife to warrant a decree of divorce.
