- By Ridhi Suri
- Wed, 03 Apr 2024 10:32 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Delhi High Court has approved the divorce of renowned celebrity chef Kunal Kapur on the basis of 'cruelty' inflicted by his wife. The court additionally noted that Kapur's wife's behavior towards him lacked dignity and empathy. A bench consisting of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna granted the divorce to the celebrity chef on Tuesday. The high court upheld Kapur's appeal against a family court's decision denying him divorce, emphasising that making unfounded, defamatory, and humiliating allegations against a spouse in public constitutes cruelty, as per established legal precedent.
"In the light of the aforenoted facts of the present case, we find that the conduct of the respondent (wife) towards the appellant (husband) has been such that it is devoid of dignity and empathy towards him. When such is the nature of one spouse towards the other, it brings disgrace to the very essence of marriage and there exists no possible reason as to why he should be compelled to live while enduring the agony of living together," a bench of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna said, according to PTI. For the unversed, the couple, who married in April 2008, welcomed a son in 2012.
In his petition, Kapur, a former judge on the television show MasterChef India, alleged that his wife consistently failed to show respect towards his parents and subjected him to humiliation. Conversely, the woman countered by accusing him of levelling baseless accusations to deceive the court. She asserted that she consistently endeavoured to maintain communication with her husband in a loving manner and remained faithful to him. Nonetheless, she alleged that he deliberately kept her in dark and concocted false narratives to secure a divorce.
She further alleged that her in-laws often ridiculed her for having a job instead of focusing on household chores. The Delhi High Court bench considered her arguments, but also said "it is a settled position of law that making reckless, defamatory, humiliating and unsubstantiated allegations in public against a spouse amounts to cruelty".
The court noted that while disagreements are common in every marriage, when such disputes escalate to include disrespect and disregard for one's spouse, the sanctity of the marriage is compromised. "It is relevant to mention here that within two years of marriage, the appellant has established himself as a celebrity chef, which is a reflection of his hard work and determination. Considering the aforesaid facts, it is only prudent to observe that these are mere allegations made by the respondent to disrepute the appellant in the eyes of the court and such unsubstantiated claims have the effect on one's reputation and therefore, amounts to cruelty," the bench said.
