The Madras High Court held that not only conversion, but an effort to proselytize a spouse to another religion without their consent is “absolute violence” amounting to cruelty.

The Court dismissed the Appeal filed by the husband challenging the decision of the Family Court which dissolved the marriage with the wife on grounds of cruelty and desertion. The Madurai Bench upheld the decision of the Family Court while holding that under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HMA), conversion of any of the spouses to another religion without the consent of the other spouse is a ground for divorce.

A Division Bench of Justice N Seshasayee And Justice L Victoria Gowri held, “The learned Trial Court has held in affirmative observing that, the respondent wife was subjected to grave cruelty by the appellant by consistently torturing her to convert herself from being a Hindu to Islam. We fully agree with the same. The respondent wife has sought for divorce on two grounds, that is, desertion as well as cruelty. The elements of desertion, includes factum desirendi and animus desirendi.

Advocate J Anandhavalli represented the Appellant, while Advocate KK Senthil appeared for the Respondent.

Brief Facts

The parties had married under the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (SMA). The Family Court granted the divorce after the wife alleged that the husband forced her to convert to Islam and change her "Thali". It was further alleged that the husband became an alcoholic and subjected her to physical and verbal abuse.

It was further alleged that the matrimonial discordance moved from bad to worse after the husband started abusing the wife with reference to her caste as she belongs to a Scheduled Caste.

Court’s Reasoning

The appellant husband had already divorced his first wife and this is a second marriage. In the name of love, he had love locked the respondent wife to fall for him in the name of marriage and had enticed her heart, which led her to commit with him in the relationship of marriage, though without converting herself to Islam,” the Court noted.

The Bench noted that upon the wife’s refusal to convert to Islam, the husband had continuously indulged in abusing the Hindu gods and inflicted both emotional and physical abuse, compelling her to convert to Islam. The Court remarked that the same was the husband’s “heinous effort to proselytize her.

The institution of marriage under every personal law is a holy unison of two souls. Marriage system is treated as sacred and the same has to be preserved. But in the name of God, in the name of religion, when a woman in a marriage or a man in a marriage is compelled to convert herself/himself to the religion of other for the sake of securing the matrimony would amount to shattering the foundation of the matrimony itself,” the Court remarked.

Under Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, conversion of any of the spouses to another religion without the consent of the other spouse is a ground for divorce. Likewise, Section 10(1)(ii) of the Divorce Act, 1869, provides conversion as a ground for dissolution of marriage. But Section 27 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954, do not provide conversion to other religion as a ground for marriage,” the Court explained.

Consequently, the Court held, “The conduct inflicted by the appellant on the respondent wife had caused grave mental pain and suffering to the respondent wife compelling her to convert to Islam shattering her belief system and damaging her conscience, which in due course of time had evolved into a challenge to her life and personal liberty to live up to her conscience and belief system. Hence, we are of the considered opinion that this is a fit case for grant of divorce on the grounds of cruelty and desertion as well, categorically holding that not only conversion, but also effort to proselytize a spouse to the religion of another without their consent is nothing, but absolute violence.

Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the Appeal.

Cause Title: X v. Y (C.M.A(MD)No.65 of 2019)

Click here to read/download the Order