The Jharkhand High Court, in a matter concerning a CISF constable’s plea for divorce on grounds of cruelty and his wife’s alleged mental illness, observed that partners must “weather these storms and embrace the sunshine with equanimity” through life’s hardships. The court noted that the wife had undergone treatment for her alleged illness, but the husband had failed to establish that she suffered from a psychiatric disorder of such a nature and extent that he could not reasonably be expected to live with her.Justices Sujit Narayan Prasad and Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, while dismissing the husband’s appeal against a family court order of September 2024 rejecting his divorce plea. The bench emphasised that a spouse cannot be abandoned merely because they are unwell, observing that “illness is often beyond a person’s control”.“The partners in a marriage must weather these storms and embrace the sunshine with equanimity. Any person may have bad health; this is not their fault, and most times, it is not within their control, as in the present case, the respondent (wife) was unwell and was taking treatment for the same. The illness had its fair share of problems,” the October 29 order read.Also Read | 23-year separation ends in divorce, husband offers entire property as alimonyShe starts laughing without any reasonThe husband claimed that he got married to the wife in January 2016 and later lived together as husband and wife in the man’s parental house and sometimes at the place of the husband’s posting in CISF. They also had a son who is now five years old. The man claimed that after marriage, he discovered that his wife had an illness and displayed short-tempered and erratic behaviour. He alleged that she sometimes started laughing without any reason, including at the time of her younger brother’s death, when other family members were grieving. He also claimed that she threw things and that her behaviour caused distress to him and his parents. Justices Sujit Narayan Prasad and Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, while talking about life said that bad times can bring with it terrible illnesses and extreme hardships.He further alleged that she was taken to psychiatrists and other medical specialists, but her condition did not improve. He claimed that he had made efforts to get her treated but could not continue living with her due to her alleged behaviour. The wife had been living at her parental home since September 2020, according to his case.Story continues below this adOn the other hand, the wife claimed that her husband and his family members had subjected her to physical and mental cruelty over a demand for Rs 5 lakh. She alleged that she was driven out of the matrimonial home along with their son on November 26, 2021, and threatened that she would not be allowed to return unless the demand was fulfilled. She denied suffering from any mental illness and maintained that she was willing to resume her married life.The husband eventually approached the family court seeking dissolution of the marriage on grounds of cruelty and the wife’s alleged mental disorder.However, the family court rejected his divorce plea in September 2024, holding that he has not been able to prove his case against the wife. Aggrieved, he moved the high court with this appeal. The husband was represented through advocate Jyoti Nayan while no one appeared for the wife. ‘Knew wife since childhood’The high court found that the couple knew each other before their marriage and that the husband’s allegation that his wife’s alleged abnormal behaviour and illness had been concealed from him did not appear to be true. It noted that the husband’s father had known the wife since her childhood and that a relative had helped arrange the marriage. Story continues below this adThe court noted that the wife had answered in a very natural, proper and balanced manner, considering all the questions put to her in the court, and further, the record shows that she has been taking care of her son at her parental house. It also found that there is no evidence that she was not able to discharge her marital obligation. On the allegation of mental illness, the court noted that the husband had relied on medical prescriptions and a psychological testing report from 2018, which referred to a possible schizophrenic-type disorder. “The report of the doctor itself shows that there is some mild abnormality and the doctor himself has not mentioned in clear words that she is suffering from schizophrenia,” it observed. Also Read | Madras High Court grants divorce, Rs 25 lakh alimony as wife willing to stay ‘only for kids’It also found that the family court had referred the wife to a mental hospital for examination by a medical board comprising two psychiatrists and a medical superintendent. The board examined her in the presence of both spouses and concluded that she did not appear to have any psychiatric illness.Referring to the law governing divorce on grounds of mental disorder, the court observed that the mere existence of a mental abnormality was not enough. The disorder must be of such a kind and extent that the spouse seeking divorce cannot reasonably be expected to live with the other.Story continues below this adThe high court upheld the family court’s order and found that the husband had failed to bring sufficient evidence to prove that the wife had treated him with cruelty and that she was incurably of unsound mind or suffering from a mental disorder of such a kind that he cannot reasonably be expected to live with him.