New Delhi: Terming it as a "peculiar" matter, a Delhi court has dismissed a woman`s plea seeking divorce to show her marital status as `single` in her passport since she wanted to go abroad and live with her son.
The woman had earlier sought divorce citing cruelty and desertion but later revealed to the court that she was seeking divorce only because she wanted to show her marital status as single in the passport.
"Petition is clearly not arising out of cruelty or desertion. On the contrary, it is arising out of a peculiar requirement of the petitioner (woman) as stated by herself; i.e.- to show her single status in the passport and for no other reason...
"As such, the petition, on the face of it, is not maintainable at all, and same is being dismissed," Additional District Judge Sujata Kohli said.
The court said the Hindu Marriage Act clearly puts down ground for divorce and does not provide for any such ground as stated by the woman for which she requires divorce.
The court passed the order on the petition filed by a woman, a resident of west Delhi.
She had initially filed the divorce case on the ground of cruelty and desertion.
However, early this month the court noted that her petition had no details of any marital discord or cruelty and that she had not even lodged any missing report of her husband who, she claimed, had deserted her and has been missing for past eight years.
On the contrary, she gave her husband`s address to the court.
On this, a general query was put to her by the court, to which she revealed that she has filed the petition so that she can get to show her marital status as `single` in her passport as she is desirous of going abroad and living with her son.
The woman reiterated the same in her statement recorded by the court wherein she specifically stated that there was no other reason for seeking divorce and that she has not yet applied for a passport as she was awaiting a decree of divorce.
On perusal of her statement, the court said the Hindu Marriage Act does not provide for any such ground for divorce.
The court gave the woman and her counsel opportunities to show as to why their petition be not dismissed. However, no legal and valid point was made by them.
"Her entire statement in totality makes it amply clear that the actual reasons for filing of this petition is neither cruelty nor desertion as alleged.
"On the contrary, it is only a legal requirement which may be there for passport department wherein she wants to show her marital status as single and only for this she wants a decree of divorce," the ADJ observed.
The woman got married in 1986 and gave birth to a boy in 1987. She shared cordial relationship with her spouse till June 2004 when the man allegedly left home following a tiff and did not return.
She told the court she occasionally received telephone calls from her husband till October 2004 after which she never heard from him and moved in with her parents and child.
The court, however, noted that the petition was lacking in essential particulars as averments made by the woman were "quite abrupt" not giving any genesis or background of the tiff after which her husband deserted her and no other details are given to show she was treated cruelly in the marriage.
The ADJ also noted that in the name of documents, only a marriage photograph has been filed in the court and the woman never filed any missing report of her husband.
Referring to a proceeding earlier this month, the court said though the woman claimed her husband to be missing, she has very well given his address.
PTI
