Jahanvi Agarwal
The Madhya Pradesh High Court, in a significant observation on 22nd August 2024, stated that the marriage of a minor girl constitutes an act of cruelty and can serve as grounds for divorce under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HMA). The Court highlighted a crucial distinction: while HMA does not provide the grounds to declare a child marriage void or voidable under Sections 11 or 12, the competent authority to declare such marriages voidable lies with the District Court under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA), 2006.
The case in question involved an appeal filed by the wife under Section 28 of the HMA against a decision by the Additional District Judge, who had dismissed her plea under Section 12 of the HMA. Represented by Advocate Sudeep Bhargava, the appellant had married at the age of 15 and later discovered that her husband, the respondent, had concealed a condition of partial blindness, which was unknown to her at the time of the marriage. The couple never consummated their marriage. The appellant sought a decree declaring the marriage void or voidable on these grounds.
A Bench consisting of Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Binod Kumar Dwivedi observed that marrying a minor not only violates the minor’s physical and emotional readiness for marital duties, but also amounts to “mental as well as physical cruelty.” This, they noted, makes a case for divorce under Section 13 of the HMA. The Court criticized the erroneous filing under Sections 11 and 12 of the HMA, pointing out that the proper legal route should have been through Section 3 of the PCMA, 2006.
Referencing the Supreme Court’s decision in Bhagwati Alias Reena v. Anil Choubey (2017) 13 Supreme Court Cases 582, the Court reaffirmed that child marriages are voidable at the option of the minor spouse. In that ruling, the Supreme Court clarified that “only the minor spouse has the right to seek annulment of the marriage” under Section 12 of PCMA, 2006.
Further, the doctrine of “pari materia” was invoked to interpret the provisions of HMA and PCMA in a harmonious manner, since both deal with the subject of marriage and should, therefore, be read together. In conclusion, the Madhya Pradesh High Court set aside the District Court’s ruling, declared the marriage null and void, and disposed of the appeal.
The ruling brings clarity to the legal treatment of child marriages and emphasizes that child marriages, being an act of cruelty, give rise to actionable grounds for divorce under the HMA, provided they are appropriately challenged under the provisions of the PCMA.
Case Name: Komal vs. Mayaram
Case Number: FA 450/2014
Bench: Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Binod Kumar Dwivedi