Komal Singh, BA LLB, Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies (VIPS)
INTRODUCTION
On May 1, 2023, the Honorable Supreme Court of India made a significant ruling in the case of Shilpa Sailesh v Varun Sreenivasan. The Constitution Bench unanimously declared that under Article 142 of the Constitution, the Supreme Court can grant a divorce directly on the grounds of an "irretrievable breakdown of marriage," even though it is not a recognized statutory ground. According to the bench, Article 142 of the constitution grants exclusive power to the Supreme Court to uphold justice, equity, and good conscience. This unique provision allows the SC to achieve "complete justice" in any "cause or matter,". Thus, the SC may go beyond the bounds of procedural and substantive law to achieve the ‘ends of justice’ in some exceptional cases1. The bench also declared that the six-month waiting period for divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, known as the "cooling-off period," is an impediment in cases where there is an 'irretrievable breakdown of marriage’. Therefore, the cooling-off period can be waived if the marriage is beyond repair. The concept of irretrievable breakdown of marriage essentially refers to a situation where the marital relationship has completely broken down and there is no chance of reconciliation or restoration of the marriage2. While the Hindu Marriage Act does not specifically recognize ‘irretrievable breakdown’ as a ground for divorce, thus the court in this significant case has recognized the need to consider this aspect in certain cases to do justice.
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