New Delhi: In the event of an irretrievable breakdown of marriage, the Supreme Court can order a divorce directly on its behalf. The legal obligation of waiting for 6 months for divorce by mutual consent will also not be necessary in such a situation.
A 5-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court has given this decision. The bench has said that the Supreme Court can give such an order by using the special power given under Article 142 of the Constitution.
Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, provides that if the husband and wife can apply for divorce by mutual consent, then the family court can apply for divorce. But due to the high number of cases in the family court, it takes time to come before the judge for hearing the application.
After this, the first motion of divorce is issued, but the second motion i.e. a formal decree of divorce has to wait for 6 months.
The Supreme Court had earlier ordered divorce on its behalf using Article 142 on the ground that it was impossible to continue the marriage in many cases. Article 142 provides that in the interest of justice, the Supreme Court can pass any order, bypassing legal formalities.