Separation doesn’t mean marriage has collapsed: SC

The Supreme Court has cautioned courts against dissolving marriages on account of irretrievable breakdown of marriage, saying husband and wife living separately does not necessarily mean that the marriage has irretrievable breakdown.

“…we may hasten to add that courts, in recent times, often observe that since the parties are living separately, the marriage should be taken to have broken irretrievably. However, before jumping to such a conclusion, it is imperative upon the family court or the high court to determine as to who out of the two is responsible for breaking the marital tie and forcing the other to live separately,” a Bench led by Justice Surya Kant (as he then was) said in its November 14 order.

The SC said judges must undertake a thorough examination of the reasons behind the separation before granting divorce on the ground of ‘irretrievable breakdown of marriage’.