Calling out for househusbands to become the new normal, the Madras High Court recently granted divorce to a couple whose marriage had “broken down beyond repair” and directed the husband to pay an alimony-cum-maintenance of Rs 2.r crore to the wife and his minor children.Justices GR Swaminathan and MD Sumathi were hearing the plea of an estranged couple, both of whom had appealed against the order of the family court, which had dismissed the wife’s plea for restitution of conjugal rights and the husband’s counter-plea for divorce.“If there can be housewives, there can be househusbands also. Let this become a new normal. We are of the view that this would help preserve the institution of marriage and family. The expression homemaker is gender neutral. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines ‘homemaker’ as a person who works at home and takes care of the house and family,” the September 23 order read.The court further observed, “Marriage is not proving to be a win-win proposition for career women. Since such women see marriage as an impediment to their career prospects, they choose to skip it altogether. The number of unmarried women is on the rise. The situation can probably be remedied if husbands would opt to be homemakers.” Justices GR Swaminathan and MD Sumathi were of the view that the expression homemaker was gender neutral.‘Both unhappy’According to the judgment, the couple got married in February 2011, and both were then employed at a medical college hospital. Subsequently, a male child was born to the couple in February 2012. To ensure that the husband was able to pursue further studies and to take care of the child, the wife chose to stay back with her parents. The husband continued to regularly visit the family.The couple was blessed with another child in February 2016, and the course of the husband was completed in 2017, after which he went for further qualifications and continued to make monthly visits to the family. The arrangement continued till April 2020 when COVID struck, and the husband joined the wife at last and began residing with his in-laws.The bench noticed that since the husband‘s “prospects were brightening on the professional front”, he also wanted to leave the in-laws’ house, which was not acceptable to the wife. “Even a physical scuffle appears to have taken place”, the court noted.Story continues below this adAlso read | Five-year-old tells Madhya Pradesh High Court he wants mother, it backs his choiceEventually, the wife filed a plea before the family court seeking resumption of the marriage, and the husband filed a case for divorce on the ground of cruelty. On August 1, 2024, the family court dismissed both the cases. Both the husband and the wife had approached the high court in appeal against the order of the trial court.On the judgment of the family court, the high court remarked “Marriages may make both the parties unhappy. But the outcome of an adversarial litigation must make at least one party happy. But this Judge succeeded in making both unhappy”.‘Increasingly career oriented’The court was of the view that “unlike the modern western societies, in Bharathiya culture, it is the family and not the individual which is the foundational unit. Traditionally, the responsibility of raising the financial resources rested on the husband while the wife took care of the domestic front. Both roles are entitled to equal respect. This position has been changing over the last half a century. Women are also increasingly becoming career-oriented. We note that this is taking a toll in many relationships. Particularly, in IT sector and other professions.”Referring to the famous book Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, the high court stated that “till a while ago, women would happily introduce themselves as housewives. These days, they put on an embarrassed look and say ‘just ahousewife’, even though there is nothing to be embarrassed about it. Housewives are not ‘little women’ (to borrow the famous title of the book by Louisa May Alcott. She famously said ‘I would rather be a free spinster and paddlemy own canoe’).”Story continues below this ad‘Beyond repair’The high court observed that “the husband was comfortable with a particular arrangement till he qualified himself fully and to his satisfaction. Once he blossomed into a successful professional, the male ego asserted itself in all its‘glory’. What worked for a decade and during Covid ceased to be feasible anymore”.Also read | Dad denied fee refund after daughter quit Indian school in 4 days, wins Rs 63,000The high court noted that the husband was comfortable till he qualified himself to his satisfaction and once he became successful, “the male ego asserted itself in all its ‘glory'” and “what worked for a decade and during Covid ceased to be feasible anymore”.The bench further stated that “it was obvious that the relationship had broken down beyond repair. The husband described the marital relationship as dead. We reminded him that having fathered two children, he has to fulfil his financial obligations”.Accordingly, while reminding the “professionally successful” husband to acknowledge the role played by the wife in taking care of the family by mothering two children, the high court granted them divorce through mutual consent.Story continues below this adThe husband was also ordered to deposit Rs 1.5 crore in the wife’s bank account within three months and Rs 50 lakh each for both his minor children, which could be withdrawn when they became major (18 years old). The high court further ruled that the divorce would take effect only when the husband fulfilled the financial obligations.