Ours was an arranged marriage according to telugu/hindu tradition. I'm a US Citizen and she's Indian citizen, my bride's family suggested that i sponsor fiance visa even though we had married in hyd in aug2013, so she can immigrate to USA sooner than spouse visa. she got her fiance visa and came to usa in dec 2013. and with her being a fiance to me as per visa, we got married here in USA in Jan 2014 legally, and we had a happy year, with few arguments, fights as any couple do or atleast we did. but we had many vacations/honeymoons together her parents back in india had many fb likes/comments to our pics/videos and everyone happy. in jan 2015, she got her Greencard physically, and she flew to india in feb 2015, thats when things started to turn differently. after she left, all i asked her to keep me in touch, phonecalls/skypes/texts etc.. as i the husband is alone in usa, so she started to say she was busy/familyfriends at home/cant talk/hanging out with friends etc.. so i got disappointed and showed my anger towards her with her behavior that, who will think bad, if she's talking to her husband all the time, its not a taboo to talk to her husband and why is she ignoring me etc.. to which they (my wife and her father got offended) so, me and my mom flew to india to reconcile. she didnt fly back on her initial return ticket (March 2015), but came to usa after a month later (April 15th'15)with a ticket bought by her friend. within 2 days after her arrival into usa, we went to beach with few friends, and i was recording video with flying drone, and she asked me to put it the car so me and her could a take a beautiful walk together, so when i came back from the car, i couldnt find her and after i walked half a mile, i found her talking to other guy her friend who he was flirting with her since the start of the day. so i got disappointed and started to walk away, which she noticed and came back to me knowing that i saw her and got upset, she started to shout at me all of a sudden that, she cant stay with me if im silent and etc.. to cover herside. after a while, I asked her why couldnt she wait for me, when initially she was the one who sent me away from the beach shore to the car to put the drone away... to which she replied that she couldnt find me.. so i argued.. if she couldnt find her husband, any wife including her should be waiting for her husband and think she's the one who sent him away in the first place, to which she couldnt reply.. and after we went home, both my father and herself talked to her parents in India, that I the husband didnt say anything back to her, instead got upset with her behavior.. her parents instead of knowing the truth of wat happened or any.. told her to come back and they will respect her decision, to which she flew back to india. in mid May 2015, she called me and my parents in usa and expressed her sorry and for her behavior and sorry for her actions and i should have stopped her from leaving. during this time, her father called my parents, and my mom asked her father to send his wife along with my wife, for moral and motherly support. and within 2 days, her father called my father and showed his interest to accompany his daughter / wife to usa. to which my father replied that, that will be difficult as I (husband/sponsor) have to sponsor both mother-in-law/father-in-law at the same time, it would be financially challenging with medical/living expenses etc. In june first, my wife called again and talked smooth to me and said she would love, if i could visit india and bring her back with me to usa. for which i've said, im ready to fly the very next day, as i love my wife. but she kinda twisted at the end saying, she will only come back to me, if and only if her parents accompany with her. to which i argued that, that is not possible, as im not financially settled, its hardly we got married 1yr over.. and explained that we initially agreed that her parents would be coming anyway, at the time of her pregancy etc.. and i again said, if you come back to me, lets try to be normal and back in love and ard dec'15 for christmas holidays, lets invite your paretns, that way, everyone can enjoy and have fun. but it would be ackward if your parents are here at this time, in our 1bed apt and i have bear expenses/medical insurance etc.. and there is a chance you might trigger me while ur parents are here, that way, your parents can again start the blame game on me, and i asked her/told her that, if she choose me, im ready to wait for her upto an year, but if she choose me and parents accompany her, then there is no point of continuing this relationship and said i will be consulting an attorney to see the options.. to which she hung up. meanwhile, he writes an email to my father asking to send the paperwork, so i replied, im the sponsor and not my dad. you're related to me and i should be the one who is supposed to send paperwork to embassy and please stop asking my dad. to which he got offended and send aanother email to my father that, he only wants to drop off his wife/daughter in america. so i wondered how come his daughter flew to india (feb) came to usa (april) and flew back to india once again (apr) all by herself? and sent the same... her father has def divided me and wife in many such situations, he should atleast think, lets my daughter and son-in-law get together then i can visit them for happy times. instead he created himself as good guy infront of her daughter in many situations and made me the bad person infront of my own wife.. without releasing the financial, relationship commitments and my career/personal life in USA. to whch my wife got offended that i couldnt sponsor his dad etc.. you understand the point.. its been 4+ months, sincei have heard back from her, my parents tried to call them, they ignore our phone calls, i've contacted her friends in usa to see if i can reach thru them.. still no answer.. and im growing impatient here and i like to proceed further with divorce in usa here, but also like to see if my divorce is uncontested by her, will india recognize my divorce and allow me to re-marry in india again? and the pain and mental tension ive faced because of them, i like to hire an attorney to file any charges if possible or divorce in india? is that feasible?
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1) you can file for divorce in USA since after marriage both you and your wife resided in USA on any of the grounds recognised by Hindu marriage act
2) if your wife does not participate in divorce proceedings your divorce decree would not be valid in India . She can challenge the divorce decree in India and you will not be able to remarry
3) your best option is to file for divorce by mutual consent
thank you, what if my wife doesnt participate with my divorce proceedings in USA and not opt for divorce by mutual consent. because when i file for my divorce here, the USA court system will transfer some paperwork to the Indian court system for deliver for the paperwork to her, and if she's not at the address i've known till date or if she's not present nor, if she doesnt reply within 30days of notice of divorce, the court here will grant me divorce as uncontested divorce. and if doesnt go for mutual consent, do i have to hire an attorney to represent me in india to file for a divorce in india as well on grounds of abandoning me, and cheating and immigration fraud basis?
1) if you feel your wife is not going to participate in divorce proceedings in USA apply for contested divorce in India on grounds of mental cruelty
2) you can file for divorce within jurisdiction of court wherein your marriage was solemnised on India or wherein your wife is residing
1. The conduct of your wife, when analysed in totality, amounts to cruelty, which entitles you to file for divorce, albeit it is not criminally actionable by you.
2. Since your wife is a citizen of India, coupled with the fact that your marriage took place in India, you should apply for divorce in India and not US. The judgment of an Indian court will not be open to challenge in US by your wife, whereas the judgment of a US court granting you divorce can be challenged by your wife in an Indian court which can quash it. If your wife challenges the judgment of a US court in India, and a stay order is issued by the Indian court it will prevent you from re-marrying and will also open another round of litigation.
In the given situation, your divorce (uncontested and exparte) at US will not be recognised in India as a divorce with her. You have married her in India as per Hindu religious rites and caste customs thus you are automatically governed by the provisions of Hindu marriage act. Therefore an uncontested divorce decree in US is not binding on her in India, if you ignore this fact for marrying some other girl in India again, you will be deemed to have committed an offence under the bigamy laws and you may be convicted with a sentence up to seven years rigorous imprisonment if found guilty.
Alternately you can file a divorce case in India through your power of attorney agent, it may be your father or any trusted person and you can fly to India during evidence stage to depose your evidence.
You can consult a lawyer in your home town in India for the formalities and court procedures in this regard.
thank you Ashish. so, based on your 2 points. for the first, i need to hire an attorney to represent me to file for divorce on basis of cruelty. parallel to divorce proceedings in USA as we got married in USA (even though we got married according to telugu/hindu marraige in india without any marriage registration), as she flew to USA in Dec'13 on fiance visa (meaning she is flying to usa to get married in USA) and we both got married here, and she got her greencard in Jan'15? so divorce in india as well? for your second point you mentioned, i agree with your answer saying "The judgment of an Indian court will not be open to challenge in US by your wife, whereas the judgment of a US court granting you divorce can be challenged by your wife in an Indian court which can quash it. If your wife challenges the judgment of a US court in India, and a stay order is issued by the Indian court it will prevent you from re-marrying and will also open another round of litigation" so, what are my options on that? how should i proceed? thank you for your help and time And is there a way, i can file any charges against my father-in-law or my ex-wife for mental cruelty or trauma i faced because of them and delaying their response.. its been nearly 5 months, they haven't contacted us in regards to this divorce process or reconcile either way, no response to my text messages, phone calls or emails... meanwhile, my wife just recently changed her last name on social networks on facebook, instagram. is that okay before divorced or divorce filing? without discussing any with me nor with my family, how can they keep silent and not respond yet change her last name on social networks?
1) no need to file for divorce in USA and incur double litigation expenses
2) file for divorce in India only
3) be prepared that your wife may file 498A or domestic violence case against you
4) the fact that your wife is not responding to your emails is in your favour . It proves that you have persistently sought to save your marriage
5) your wife does not want you keeping tabs on you . Hence must be using her maiden name on social networking sites
1. The only option you should invoke is to file for divorce in India against your wife.
2. You cannot file any criminal charges against either your wife or in-laws as they have not violated the criminal law.
3. Your wife is at liberty to change her surname even before divorce. She is not obligated to use your surname in the first place.
And is there a way, i can file any charges against my father-in-law or my ex-wife for mental cruelty or trauma i faced because of them and delaying their response.. its been nearly 5 months, they haven't contacted us in regards to this divorce process or reconcile either way, no response to my text messages, phone calls or emails... meanwhile, my wife just recently changed her last name on social networks on facebook, instagram. is that okay before divorced or divorce filing? without discussing any with me nor with my family, how can they keep silent and not respond yet change her last name on social networks?
You can file a divorce case on the grounds of cruelty. If you feel that your father in law has done any cruel act against you and you have been injured (physically), then you have a ground to lodge a complaint with the local police of the jurisdiction where the incidence reportedly took place but eh matrimonial disputes do not have an answer with the police.
For changing her name in social network or through government gazette publication, she need not have to take permission or consent from anyone including husband, it is her fundamental right which has been fully protected by the constitution of India. So dont waste time concentrating on such flimsy issues.
If she is not responding to your phone calls or any other mode of communication, you may decide against her about the next course of action.
1. You can get the No Fault divorce decree from US Court even if she does not appear but theb said decre will not be acceptable by Indian Court,
2. Moreover, you have also married her in India as per Hindu tradition. so, you need to either take a decree of divorce from Indian Court or get your US decree of divorce endorsed by Indian Court,
3.If she appears before US Court agreeing for no fault divorce decree then it will be acceptable to Indian courts since it will be treated as mutual consent divorce,
4.You are required to file a divorce case in India also to remarry in India,
5.Negotiate with her and try for mutual consent divorce which is likely to be disposed of within 6 & 1 and 1/2 years.
1. Yes, you collect the decree of divorce in US first,
2. After that file a divorce petition in India on the ground of cruelty by executing POA in favour of any body in India who will represent you while filing the case and representing you in contesting the case,
3. The said POA executed in US is required to be attested by Indian Consulate of US.
1. If the case wherein the decree of no fault divorce passed by US Court is attended by your wife without any contest, hen you can get the said decree validated by Indian court on the plea that it is equal to mutual consent divorce,
2. Otherwise, the said decree passed ex-parte can be challenged by your wife in India since you married in India also following Hindu Customs,rites and rituals,
3.So, it is required for you to take decree of divorce issued by Indian court also to legally marry in India,
4. Her father can not be ued for subjecting yourself to mental cruelty and you can apply for the decree of divorce for her said mental cruelty,
5. She has the liberty to change her name to her maiden name and this act of her is not a ground for seeking divorce.