Madras High Court Rejects Notion That Wife Must Follow Husband Everywhere

The Madras High Court has ruled that a wife cannot be expected to follow her husband wherever he goes, comparing such an expectation to the pug in a Vodafone advertisement. The observation came during a matrimonial dispute case where a division bench of Justices GR Swaminathan and MD Sumathi set aside a family court order that had previously dismissed a husband's divorce petition. The family court had originally reasoned that a husband has a solemn duty to take his wife with him when relocating for work and had found that the husband violated marital obligations by moving to Mumbai without her. The High Court disagreed, stating that it may not always be feasible to take a spouse along, citing examples such as soldiers living in army barracks or wives who are gainfully employed. The court further remarked that while radical feminists might applaud the trial court's revolutionary approach, it could not endorse that reasoning. Regarding the specific case, the couple had been married since 1992 and had lived separately for 16 years. While the court did not accept the husband's allegations of adultery because the alleged paramour was not made a party to the proceedings, it concluded that the marriage had broken down beyond repair. Citing Supreme Court precedent, the bench noted that prolonged separation and the absence of cohabitation can amount to cruelty under the Hindu Marriage Act.