Q: I was married in March 2006 under the Hindu Marriage Act and the marriage was duly registered. Within three weeks I returned to my father’s home due to mental torture and ill treatment by my husband. We filed a petition for divorce on mutual consent in November 2010. My husband did not appear for the hearings and the suit was dismissed in September 2013. How do I get a divorce?

Name withheld

A: It is evident that your husband is not interested in giving you a divorce. Your only option now is to file a suit for divorce on appropriate grounds before the district court. You may also file a petition for maintenance pendentilite in the same suit. If he does not contest this suit, you may be given an ex parte hearing. If the court is satisfied that you have made out an appropriate case against him, it will grant you an ex parte divorce decree.

Q: I have been married for four years and have a three-year-old son. Unable to take the mental torture from my husband and mother-in-law, I have returned to my father’s house. I don’t want to go back, and at this juncture, I do not wish to lodge any complaint or file a case against them either. If I do so in future, will this delay be a disadvantage for me?

Name withheld

A: Even if you do not institute any case against your husband or in-laws, it is advisable that you intimate the police about your unfortunate state, putting it on record. The delay in filing may not affect a case of maintenance or divorce. But if you intend to institute a criminal case for recovery of your streedhan or of cruelty under Section 406 or 498A of the Indian Penal Code, the delay may go against you.

Q: I got married in 2008. I left for Australia in 2012 and, after completing a course, I started working in September 2013. My wife, who is employed, was living with my parents in Calcutta. Recently she moved to her parents’ house. She wants me to return to Calcutta and live separately with her. Neither of these is possible. We do not have any children. I want to end this relationship. What should I do?

Name withheld

A: If you have made up your mind to break your martial tie, then you have no option but to file a suit for divorce with appropriate grounds against your wife. You may institute divorce proceedings within the jurisdiction of the concerned district judges court.