• Can wife claim financial settlement/maintenance after she has left me for more than 1.5 years?

One fine day my wife left my home and went and settled in her fathers place without any intimation. I am my family tried multiple times to bring her back but she refused to come back and started blaming myself and my family with no grounds or proof.Later I sent her legal notice to return to my home, even then no response from her. And she is not even willing to give legal divorce as well. In between her father started harassing us for marriage settlement financially.

I am really confused and need your expert advise on to bring a solution to this. I am being helpless due to biased society.

I need to know on what grounds can I initiate divorce and get this settled. I am financially weak. I work in a private company and have parents depending on me. And have no property in my name.

Please help!
Asked 6 years ago in Family Law
Religion: Hindu

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15 Answers

Hi,

You are suggested to start the case of restitution of conjugal rights as a proof of your intention to call her back. Then cite the reason of your intention to call her back and put pressure to settle in minimum amount.

Ganesh Singh
Advocate, New Delhi
7169 Answers
16 Consultations

1) file for divorce on grounds of mental cruelty 

 

2) wife refusing to stay with husband without sufficient cause amounts to mental cruelty and is ground for divorce 

 

3) wife can seek interim maintenance and alimony from husband 

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
99784 Answers
8145 Consultations

Very much read kusum sharma judgement, it will give any husband a heart attack, if she files, categorically, see what all you have to disclose

Aveek Bose
Advocate, Kolkata
1222 Answers
9 Consultations

1. What is the reason for her leaving you?

 

2. Did she cause any cruelty on you or your family members?

 

3. Did she insist you to abandon your old parents and stay separately?

 

4. You shall have to collect evidence of her cruel acts against you first and thereafter file a divorce suit against her on the ground of cruelty.

 

5. You can also file the divorce suit after two years of her deserting you on the ground of desertion.

 

6. If you can prove that she has deserted you without any reason or is highly qualified to earn her livelihood, you won't have to pay any maintenance to her.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly
Advocate, Kolkata
27703 Answers
726 Consultations

Let 2 years pass than can apply for divorce on the ground of 2 years desertion and mental cruelty. Till than record their threats of filling false cases and demand of money to settle the matter.

These recordings will be supportive evidence to obtain divorce. 

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
23081 Answers
31 Consultations

You may deny any payment or settlement to her.

You may inform her and her father that you are ready and willing to take her back without any condition provided she assures that she will not go back once again.

If they are still adamant on this then you may ask them to obtain reliefs through court.

you may keep all records of her voluntary abandonment of the matrimonial home and your efforts to bring her back which  will be  documentary evidence  to you to support your  future  litigation and to defend your interests.

You can file a divorce case on the grounds of cruelty if you feel that it will be no more possible to continue this marital life with her.

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
89986 Answers
2493 Consultations

As per Supreme Court judgment, wife is expected to move in with the relatives of their husbands, follow the rules and customs of their home, and ideally, blend in seamlessly as a new daughter. 

- Further, the court granted divorce to a man on the grounds of “cruelty” after his wife refused to share a home with her in-laws.

- Further, Wife Living Separately from Husband without Any Reason Can't Get Maintenance, and further this is a good ground for getting divorce from the court of law.

Further, If wife is not supporting her husband for the enjoyment of life and denying relation , then the husband can get divorce after filing a divorce petition before the court on this ground.

- Since, she is not interested to live with you, then you should send her a legal notice to join the matrimonial life.

- If, within 7 days of time , she not response , then you file a case for Restitution of Conjugal right , on the ground of the said legal notice.

- Further, if you dont want to continue with her due to continuous cruelty upon you, then you should firstly lodge your complaint /information to the local police , after mentioning that you are facing hardship from your wife and her family members , and further they are giving threaten to implicate you & your family members in false cases of dowry . 

- Further, you can file the divorce petition on the above mentioned grounds . 

- If, she will not appear before the court , then you will get ex-parte judgment in your favour within a period of 2 to 3 months , and further she cannot claim maintenance /alimony from you. 

- For a quick divorce, you should prepare her for mutual consent divorce.       

 

Good luck and dont forget to rating Positively.

Mohammed Shahzad
Advocate, Delhi
15814 Answers
242 Consultations

See you can file a divorce on ground of cruelty you can file a divorce stating wife has left you , failed to perform marital duties deserted you harassing along with her family you can cite all this as cruelty and can file a divorce on ground of same.

Also see if she if file for any maintenance and alimony you can take ground as wife deserted you harassed and also she is qualified to contest her application before the court.

Further if possible ask fir a mutual divorce without alimony.if she is not interested in this marriage any more.

Shubham Jhajharia
Advocate, Ahmedabad
25513 Answers
179 Consultations

1. If you don't want to give her maintenance then file RCR petition and try to prove that she left you without any reason or sufficient cause. 

2. If somehow you can prove that she left you without any reason or sufficient cause then you may not have to pay her maintenance.

3. Dont settle by mutual consent divorce If you cannot pay her one time settlement amount.

Mohit Kapoor
Advocate, Rohtak
10686 Answers
7 Consultations

you can file for divorce against your wife on the ground of cruelty. Staying away from the matrimonial house for as long as 3 months amounts to cruelty upon the husband. You can thus file for divorce against her. Alternatively you can also file a case for resumption of conjugal duties against her and the court would order her to return to her matrimonial home. 

Mohammed Mujeeb
Advocate, Hyderabad
19325 Answers
32 Consultations

1. The ground is cruelty. After 2 years from the date on which she left you an additional ground of desertion will also accrue in your favour.

2. If she sues you for maintenance then court will award you maintenance unless you are able to prove that she is self sufficient. However, your liabilities will have to be factored in by the court before fixing the quantum.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30840 Answers
981 Consultations

She can claim maintenance If she is not working and not capable of work. You can oppose alimony if she is working and capable to work. You can also claim that you always offered her to return and stay with your but she denied

Prashant Nayak
Advocate, Mumbai
34520 Answers
249 Consultations

Dear Sir,

You can file divorce on a ground of voluntary desertion by the wife without any reason. You may avoid payment of maintenance and alimony if she is well educated and/or doing job.

Kishan Dutt Kalaskar
Advocate, Bangalore
6230 Answers
499 Consultations

She deserted you without any reasons and now they want to settle. Don't reply to any of their respresponses. Instead let them file a case. You should file a divorce petition against her for cruelty and desertion.

Rahul Mishra
Advocate, Lucknow
14114 Answers
65 Consultations

Dear Sir,

It is better to file Restitution of conjugal rights against your wife in family court.

If RCR is passed it will help you in proving that you are innocent, she cannot claim maintenance from you
she is deserter in the eyes of laws , she has no right of maintenance in future, husband will be in safer place
RCR will be passed and if she fails to join him within one year ,it a ground for divorce for husband for failure of restitution decree

If she denies to cohabit with you even after the R.C.R. decree is awarded then you can file an suit for execution of such decree under order 21 Rule 32 of the Civil Procedure code and then after a lapse of one year from the date of such R.C.R. decree you can file divorce petition u/s 13 (1-A)(ii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. If conjugal right is not restored within one year of getting the RCR decree, the aggrieved party is eligible to get divorce.

 

  1. she can file any case as she likes
    this RCR will dilute the seriousness of her cases
    3. if she doesnt join with you as per the court order within one year then that will become the ground for you to apply for the divorce

 

  • You get a leverage in maintenance & alimony, since you are ready to take care of her needs and necessities but she doesn’t want to join you.

 

SEC 9 OF HMA – restitution of conjugal rights. it is a prayer by a  petitioner; summon by a competent court ;  and order by a court to the spouse who left her matrimonial duties without sufficient reason.

 

Netravathi Kalaskar
Advocate, Bengaluru
4951 Answers
27 Consultations

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