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India being a secular country, follows all kinds of customs and religious practices. Some religious practices are also backed by law, especially marriages and divorce, which are basic and major life functions. Marital laws in India is broadly dissected into the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 that governs the Hindus, Indian Divorce Act of 1869 and Indian Christian Marriage Act of 1872 are for the Christians, Muslims follow the Dissolution of Muslim marriages, Parsi' go by Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act 1936 and for all the inter-caste marriages provisions are laid under the Special Marriage Act of 1954. 

All Indian marital laws include jurisdictional rules. Jurisdictional obligations are the same under the Special Marriage Act 1954 and the Hindu Marriage Act 1955. A divorce petition can be put in the district court within the local limits of whose original civil jurisdiction the. The Special Marriage Act's applicability is not restrictive as it applies to Indians and foreign citizens.

The individuals not necessarily are domiciled in India to solidify the nuptials under the Special Marriage Act. A petition concerning any matrimonial case can be presented in the Court of the district judge within the local reach of whose ordinary jurisdiction either the this falls under the Indian Divorce Act 1869:

• Residence of the spouse; or

• last stayed together

Where several courts have jurisdiction, a party can prefer one of them. Where a court's authority is questioned, the inclination is generally given to factors that support the jurisdiction's scope.

In the case of Y Narasimha Rao and others v Y Venkata Lakshmi and others (1991) 3 SCC 451, the Court held that Indian marriages could only be terminated under either the common practice of customs or legal law in force in India. Consequently, the only law that can apply to marital conflicts is the one under which the parties are married.

However, difficulty occurs concerning parties who are domiciled abroad but arrive in India for solemnisation of marriage. When these parties enter into matrimonial disputes, it becomes ambiguous to know if the divorce petition is maintainable in India.

The Supreme Court of India has not settled on this issue. The Bombay High Court holds the main view emerging from the High Court views that domicile in India is a must for implementing Indian matrimonial laws (Ms Kashmira Kale v Mr Kishore Kumar Mohan Kale Writ Petition No 1242 of 2010). Despite this, this view does not oblige the Courts. For jurisdiction, the Indian domicile of one of the parties is sufficient to confer jurisdiction on the Indian Courts.

There are some wider scopes of Divorce that are constituted under martial law, such as:

• Divorce by Mutual Consent

Mutual Divorce is granted by the Court when both the spouses cooperatively choose to take a divorce. It is laid under Section 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 and Section 28 of the Special Marriages Act of 1954: which states that spouses need to stay separately for over one year to file for mutual divorce consent. Section 10A of the India Divorce Act, which governs Christian marriages in India, states that the spouses have to be separated for two years to file for divorce by mutual separation.

• Adultery leading to Divorce

Adultery is the  Act of living with and having intimate relations with a person who is not legally espoused. Even a single act of infidelity is adequate for the concerned spouse to file a decree for divorce. Nonetheless, this section does not apply to Muslim women as restricted polygamy, up to four wives, is allowed in Muslim law. Whereas the Hindus, Christians and Parsis can file for divorce following grounds of adultery.

• Cruelty amongst the Spouse 

If both the husband or wife subjects one another to any manner of cruelty, it enhances a ground for divorce. The mate that has been treated inhumanely can file for divorce. Cruelty as a condition for divorce involves both mental and physical cruelty. Physical cruelty adds any form of physical violence that either of the spouses may have faced. Mental cruelty is considered either emotional or psychological abuse, which grows to be a ground for divorce.

As per the Indian Divorce Act, 1869, Christian women could not appeal for a divorce on grounds for cruelty till 2001. The amendment to the India Divorce Act allowed Christian women to apply for a divorce on the grounds of cruelty. Earlier it was said that "Cruelty and adultery had to be together put forward as a ground for divorce, this impaired a lot of women as they could not apply for a divorce. Due to these technicalities, many women were denied a divorce by the Court or could not apply for a divorce as they did not fit in. 

Similarly, there are also some other reasons for Divorce that are specifically covered under certain laws like;

• Bigamy

If the husband has re-married under any motive while his first marriage has not been terminated, the wife from the first marriage may go ahead for divorce on bigamy grounds. These sections apply to all women, except Muslim women, as polygamy is allowed in Muslim law. Simultaneously, it holding ground for divorce; bigamy is further a criminal offence under the Indian Penal Code.

• Unnatural Sex 

Imagine the husband subjects the wife to any unnatural or non-consensual sexual intercourse. In this case, the wife can file for divorce on rape, sodomy and bestiality. This continues to be offences under the India Penal Code and is grounds for divorce open to the wife.

Divorce is a finalised decree that announces both parties to be legally out of wedlock—the decree of divorce benefits with child custody, child support, spouse support and property division. If not, take that up, then the consequences are definitely at a greater stage. One could wind up all the benefits mentioned above, including claiming alimony payments are getting into further marriage. Hence, to avoid any problem with the child custody and visitation and financial support and property division. Definitely, divorce is the most traumatic event in one's life, and no one wants to go through the period, but to uphold essential rights and duties, one cannot even escape it. The above article examines and analyses all the kinds of divorce that bifurcated under different Hindus laws, Muslims, Parsis, and all the people who solemnise their marriage in India.