Consumption of alcohol by a wife does not amount to cruelty against her husband, unless it causes her to act in an unwarranted manner, the High Court said.

A Division Bench made the observation while deciding a man’s appeal seeking divorce from his wife.

One of the arguments made by the husband was that his wife was going outside with her friends without informing him and also consuming alcohol.

“Consuming of Alcohol by itself does not amount to cruelty, if it is not followed by unwarranted & uncivilized behavior. Though, consuming of alcohol in middle-class society is still a taboo and not a part of culture, however there is no pleadings on record to show as to how consuming of alcohol has caused cruelty to the husband/appellant,” the Court said.

The couple had married in 2015 after meeting through a matrimonial website. As per the husband’s plea, the wife along with their son left him in 2016 to live in Kolkata. He had moved the family court in Lucknow, which rejected his plea.

The wife chose to not respond to the appeal before the High Court, leading to passing of an ex parte decision.

The High Court considered the case on two grounds - cruelty and desertion. It observed that both the grounds are mutually exclusive to each other.

“Cruelty can by itself be a ground for dissolution of marriage, like desertion by itself also be a ground like any other ground for grant of decree of divorce,” it explained.

On cruelty, the Court found there was no pleadings to show how consumption of alcohol had caused cruelty to the wife.

“Infact, the learned Family Court was right in observing that there is no pleadings on records to show that because of consumption of alcohol, the child born out of the wedlock was weak or unhealthy or there was any problem in the pregnancy of the respondent/wife,” it added.

Further, the Court said there was no record to show that various calls received by the wife were that of her male friends or how it had caused cruelty to the husband.

“This Court is in agreement with the findings returned by the learned Family Court that the Appellant/Husband was not able to prove as to what act or instances and on which date and/or period, any cruelty was inflicted on him, so as to make him entitle for a decree of divorce on the ground of cruelty,” it said.

However, the Court took note of the fact that the wife has been living separately from husband since 2016.

It ruled that the same amounted to desertion under the Hindu Marriage Act.

“It has come on record that when the respondent-wife left the house of the appellant-husband along-with the child, the appellant-husband asked her to come back and live with him, however, she refused to come back, without any reasonable cause. Her refusal to join the company of her husband also amounts to willful neglect in view of the explanation appended to Section 13 of the HMA, 1955,” it said.

The Court also took an adverse view of the wife’s non-participation in the case, observing that it showed her intention to not return to her matrimonial home.

Accordingly, the Court allowed the husband’s appeal and granted him divorce.

“We are of the considered opinion that the Respondent/wife has deserted the Appellant/husband without any reasonable cause and he has been willfully neglected and as such a case for grant of divorce on this ground is made out in the peculiar undisputed facts and circumstances of the present case,” it held.