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What Is Divorce?

Divorce, which is also known as dissolution of marriage, is the process of ending a marriage or marital partnership. Divorce involves rearranging or removing the legal obligations and responsibilities of marriage, which dissolves the bonds of matrimony between a married couple under the specific legal system of the nation or state.

What Is the Indian divorce process like? What Kinds of Divorces Are There?

In India, the divorce process begins with the filing of the divorce petition and ends with the issuance of the divorce's final order.

The divorce process is broken down into six steps, which are as follows:

• Filing Of The Petition
• Service Of Summons
• Response
• Trial
• Interim Orders
• Final Orders

The filing of a divorce petition is essentially where the divorce process begins. The petition must be written by one of the parties to the divorce and served on the other party in order for the divorce process to proceed.

Even though there was a great deal of marital conflict and problems, divorce used to be viewed as a sin and was despised in society. As a result, spouses were forced to endure a painful and failing marriage relationship.

There have been numerous studies conducted on the subject of divorce, including how to file for a divorce from a wife in India or how to seek a divorce from a husband, as it is still thought to be one of the most traumatic and agonising experiences for a married pair. If the process is not adequately understood, it could get out of hand, be time-consuming, and cause a mess.

In comparison to other legal proceedings, the Indian Judicial System has a greater rate of disposing of divorces, taking into account the fact that all procedures are handled correctly with the assistance of a qualified attorney and in compliance with the law.

The divorce process in India can be broadly divided into two categories:

• Divorce by Mutual Consent
• Contested Divorce

Marriage and divorce are considered personal concerns in India, and the rules governing them were developed in accordance with various religious conventions and privileges. As a result, India has specific divorce rules that apply to those who practise different religions.

• The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 governs - Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains 
• Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act, 1939 - Muslims 
• Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936 - Parsis.
• Indian Divorce Act, 1869- Christians.
• The Special Marriage Act, 1956 - all inter- community and civil marriages.

Divorce With Mutual Consent

Contested divorce takes much longer to complete than mutual divorce. When both partners decide to end their troubled union, they choose to divorce following the process under Mutual Consent.

Both the husband and wife must write, verify, and sign a joint divorce petition before it can be submitted to the relevant court.

The court grants the parties a window of six to eighteen months following the filing of the joint petition. The cooling-off phase is this time frame. If during this time the couple does not get along, the parties can move toward filing for divorce by submitting the second motion.

The court will issue a divorce decree if, following the filing of the second motion, it is satisfied that both spouses have freely consented to the divorce without being subjected to force or undue influence. The Indian divorce process is concluded with mutual consent once both parties have agreed to and specified the conditions of the settlement in their divorce petition.

In order to submit a joint petition for divorce with mutual consent, the spouse must have been apart for more than a year or two years, respectively, in accordance with Section 13(B) of the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 and Section 28 of the Special Marriage Act of 1954.

Contested Divorce

Under The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, a divorce petition can be filed when either the wife or the husband undergoes the following at the behest of the other - 

• Adultery
• Cruelty
• Domestic Violence
• Conversion to another religion
• Mental disorder
• Communicable diseases
• Desertion
• Renunciation from the world
• Presumption of death 

A Muslim man may divorce his wife without taking the matter to court, in accordance with Muslim personal divorce laws. However, if a Muslim woman wishes to end a marriage and grant a divorce, she must first obtain her husband's consent or may submit a divorce petition under the Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act on the basis of one of the following grounds:

• Husband is found to be missing for a period of last four years
• Husband is unable to maintain the wife and the family for a period of last two years
• Husband is imprisoned for a period of seven years or more
• Husband is unable to fulfill marital obligations for a period of three years.
• Husband suffers from insanity or leprosy for a period of two years.
• Husband is impotent.

The following grounds for divorce for a Christian couple are listed in the Indian divorce act:

• Conversion of religion by the husband and marrying another girl,
• Adultery,
• Bigamy along with adultery,
• Commitment of sodomy, rape or bestiality by the husband
• Cruelty along with adultery
• Adultery along with Desertion for a least time period of 2 years.

Different from the traditional Hindu Marriage Act is the Special Marriage Act. This statute specifically regulates civil unions, such as those formed between members of different castes or religions, as well as the parties' divorce actions. The grounds of divorce are:

• Adultery
• Desertion for a period of 2 years or more
• Imprisonment of spouse for a period of seven years or more 
• Cruelty
• Any form of communicable or Venereal diseases
• If the spouse is found missing or not heard of being alive for a total period of 7 years or more
• Judicial Separation.