"Removal Of The Uterus, Cannot Be Termed As A Ground Of Mental Cruelty Warranting Dissolution Of Marriage": Madras High Court (image: unsplash/ Zoriana Stakhniv)In a recent judgement, the Madras High Court held that a married woman who is diagnosed with ‘ovarian cancer’ getting her uterus removed cannot be considered as mental cruelty to her husband, consequently the grounds for the dissolution of marriage. The Madurai bench of Justices RMT Teekaa Raman and Justice PB Balaji delivered the noteworthy judgment on December 22 which ratified the family court’s order dismissing a man’s plea for divorce.
The man, the petitioner before the High Court argued that the wife suppressed the fact that she was suffering from cancer. Citing the Hindu Marriage Act, he claimed his wife’s inability to give birth to children after the removal of uterus comes under suppression of material facts, desertion and mental cruelty.
However, the High Court validated the Family Court’s findings that the woman had been diagnosed with cancer after marriage, so dismissed his divorce plea. The Court also stated that since she had no symptoms prior to the marriage, the suppression of any medical information cannot be claimed.
The Court, then opined that the wife had successfully battled ovarian cancer, and during the course of the treatment, due to emergency and life threatening situation she had to remove her uterus, and the information was conveyed to the husband.
“In such a circumstance, we find that only during the subsistence of marriage, wife was afflicted with cancer which resulted in removal of the uterus, cannot be termed as a ground of mental cruelty warranting dissolution of marriage.,” Bar and Bench quotes as the Court is saying.
The bench further added that during cross-examination, the husband admitted the possibility of getting children via surrogacy.