Section 13 of Hindu Marriage Act 1955: Divorce
Divorce Hindu Marriage Act 1955
13. Divorce- (1) Any marriage solemnized, whether before or after the commencement of the Act,
may, on a petition presented by either the husband or the wife, be dissolved by a decree of divorce
on the ground that the other party-
(i) has, after the solemnization of the marriage had voluntary sexual intercourse with any person
other than his or her spouse; or
(ia) has, after the solemnization of the marriage, treated the petitioner with cruelty; or
(ib) has deserted the petitioner for a continuous period of not less than two years immediately
preceding the presentation of the petition; or
(ii) has ceased to be a Hindu by conversion to another religion ; or (iii) has been incurably of unsound mind, or has suffering continuously or intermittently from
mental disorder of such a kind and to such an extent that the petitioner cannot reasonably be
expected to live with the respondent.
Explanation- In this clause-
(a) the expression “mental disorder” means mental illness, arrested or incomplete development of
mind, psychopathic disorder or any other disorder or disability of mind and include schizophrenia;
(b) the expression “psychopathic disorder” means a persistent disorder or disability of mind
(whether or not including sub-normality of intelligence) which results in abnormally aggressive or
seriously irresponsible conduct on the part of the other party and whether or not it requires or is
susceptible to medical treatment; or
(iv) has been suffering from a virulent and incurable form of leprosy; or
(v) has been suffering from veneral disease in a communicable form; or
(vi) has renounced the world by entering any religious order; or
(vii) has not been heard of as being alive for a period of seven years or more by those persons who
would naturally have heard of it, had that party been alive;
Explanation.- In this sub-section, the expression “desertion” means the desertion of the petitioner
by the other party to the marriage without reasonable cause and without the consent or against the
wish of such party, and includes the wilful neglect of the petitioner by the other party to the
marriage, and its grammatical variations and cognate expression shall be construed accordingly.
(1-A) Either party to a marriage, whether solemnized before or after the commencement of this
Act, may also present a petition for the dissolution of the marriage by a decree of divorce on the
ground-
(i) that there has been no resumption of cohabitation as between the parties to the marriage for a
period of one year or upwards after the passing of a decree for judicial separation in a proceeding
to which they were parties; or (ii) that there has been no restitution of conjugal rights as between
the parties tothe marriage for a period of one year or upward after the passing of a decree of
restitution of conjugal rights in a proceeding to which they were parties.
(2) A wife may also present a petition for the dissolution of her marriage by a
decree of divorce on the ground-
(i) in the case of any marriage solemnized before the commencement of this Act,
that the husband had married again before the commencement or that any other
wife of the husband married before such commencement was alive at the time of
the solemnization of the marriage of the petitioner:
Provided that in either case the other wife is alive at the time of the presentation of
the petition;
(ii) that the husband has, since the solemnization of the marriage, been guilty of
rape, sodomy or bestiality; or
(iii) that in a suit under Section 18 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act,
(78 of 1956), or in a proceeding under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973, (Act 2 of 1974) or under corresponding Section 488 of the Code
of Criminal Procedure, (5 of 1898), a decree or order, as the case may be, has
been passed against the husband awarding maintenance to the wife
notwithstanding that she was living apart and that since the passing of such decree
or order, cohabitation between the parties has not been resumed for one year or
upwards;or
(iv) that her marriage (whether consummated or not) was solemnized before she attained the age of fifteen years and she has repudiated the marriage after
attaining that age but before attaining the age of eighteen years.
Explanation.- This clause applies whether the marriage was solemnized before or
after the commencement of the Marriage Law (Amendment) Act, 1976.