'Relationship of Wife and Husband Is Based on Trust and Respect': Jharkhand High Court Grants Divorce to Woman, Cites 'Character Assassination' by Husband

Mumbai, January 10: The Jharkhand High Court has granted a divorce to a 32-year-old woman, ruling that her husband’s actions -accessing her private pre-marital photographs without consent and sharing them with family members - constituted "character assassination" and mental cruelty. A Division Bench comprising Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Arun Kumar Rai set aside a 2023 family court order that had initially dismissed the woman’s plea, observing that the "thread of trust" essential to a marriage had been irreparably broken.

Breach of Privacy and Humiliation of the Woman

The case dates back to a marriage solemnised in March 2020. According to the petition, the conflict began just one day after the wedding when the husband accessed the woman’s mobile phone while she was asleep. He reportedly retrieved "objectionable" photographs from her Google Drive - images related to a relationship she had before the marriage - and transferred them to his own device. ‘How Much Commission Have You Taken So Far?’: Jharkhand High Court Judge Slams IAS Officer Over Land Compensation Case, Calls Him ‘Monkey’; Video Goes Viral.

The Court found that the husband subsequently shared these private images with his parents and other relatives. This led to a pattern of continuous humiliation and psychological distress for the wife within the matrimonial home. The Bench noted that such conduct by a spouse represents a severe form of mental agony, making cohabitation impossible.

Legal Definition of Mental Cruelty

While the High Court found no concrete evidence of the physical assault alleged by the woman, it emphasised that cruelty under Section 13(1)(i-a) of the Hindu Marriage Act is not limited to physical harm.

“Relationship of wife and husband is based on trust and respect... if it is broken it is non-repairable as trust is the foundation of marriage,” the Bench remarked. The judges concluded that the husband’s actions went beyond a mere domestic dispute, amounting to a deliberate attempt to malign the wife’s character using private digital data.

Defense and Lower Court's Ruling

The husband had contested the divorce, stating he was willing to accept her despite her past relationship, which he claimed she had not disclosed before marriage. He denied the allegations of torture and blackmail. In 2023, a family court had ruled in his favour, denying the divorce because the allegations of cruelty were not sufficiently proven.

However, the High Court disagreed with the lower court's assessment, ruling that the psychological impact of having one’s private life exposed to in-laws by a spouse is a "deleterious" form of mental cruelty. HC on Wife's Maintenance: Wife Residing Away From Husband Without Any Reasonable Cause Not Entitled to Maintenance, Says Jharkhand High Court.

Background and Precedent

The ruling underscores the evolving judicial stance on digital privacy within marriages. By categorising the unauthorised access and distribution of a spouse's private digital content as "mental cruelty," the Jharkhand High Court has reinforced the principle that marriage does not grant a spouse the right to violate the other's bodily or digital autonomy.

The Court eventually allowed the appeal, dissolved the marriage, and granted the decree of divorce, effectively ending the nearly six-year legal battle.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 10, 2026 08:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).