Family, Marriage & Divorce

In matrimonial cases concerning the recovery of gold ornaments, the burden of initial proof lies with the wife to establish the entrustment of those assets to her husband. The initial onus of proof is on the wife to substantiate that the amount and the gold ornaments were misappropriated by the husband and his family, and that money was entrusted to them in trust at the time of marriage.

In cases concerning the gold and cash given to a woman during her marriage, the courts should apply the principle of preponderance of probabilities as documentary proof of entrustment is not often available for the transaction.

The Supreme Court (SC), in Aditi Alias Mithi v Jitesh Sharma [2023 INSC 981 ] directs the courts in India to follow the detailed guidelines issued by it in Rajnesh v Neha &  Another [(2021) 2 SCC 32], including filing of the uniform format of Affidavit for Disclosure of Assets and Liabilities, in maintenance proceedings.

The Kerala High Court in xxx v yyy 2nd February 2023 says a wife is eligible for maintenance under Section 125 of CrPC even if there is an agreement by which a wife waives her right of maintenance. This is because such an agreement is against public policy. Therefore, such an agreement is ab initio void and not enforceable.

The Kerala High Court says, in Jayaprakash E P v Sheney P & Connected Case [2025:KER:5702], that even if the wife holds a temporary job and earns some income, it does not disentitle her from claiming maintenance from her husband, provided she claims that her income is insufficient for her maintenance.

Mutual Consent Divorce is the quickest form of divorce for an irreparably broken marriage. It is the divorce sought and obtained from the family court by consenting spouses, preferably by filing a joint petition. Divorce is normally sought only when the husband and wife do not want to live together in a matrimonial relation any longer.

In a judgement in xxx v xxx [2025:KER:25098], Kerala High Court ordered divorce on the ground of cruelty, specifically due to persistent neglect, lack of affection, and denial of conjugal rights without valid reasons which caused severe mental trauma to the spouse.

In a claim for return of gold ornaments and money, the wife has to initially prove the entrustment. Mere assertions, without any trace of evidence, are not sufficient to grant a decree by the family court, says the High Court of Kerala  (HCK) in Mohandas v Sunitha Mohandas [2024:KER:81527].

The proceedings under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (DV Act) is basically civil in nature. Therefore there is no requirement for a party to be personally present as such proceedings are quasi-criminal in nature, says the SC in Vishal Shah v Monalisha Gupta & Others.

A divorced wife cannot seek permanent alimony just to attain equal wealth status with the ex-husband, says the Supreme Court (SC) in Rinku Baheti Vs Sandesh Sharda [2024 INSC 1014]. The matrimonial proceedings to seek maintenance or alimony is being used as an attempt for equalisation of wealth with the other party.

In Parvin Kumar Jain v Anju Jain [2024 INSC 961), the Supreme Court (SC) by relying on the judgements in Kiran Jyot Maini v Anish Pramod Patel and Rajnesh v Neha, outlines the factors regarding permanent alimony.