INTRODUCTION
A mangal sutra is not just a piece of jewellery or a fashion accessory, it is a symbol of love and respect between a wife and husband. Wearing mangalsutra, bangal, or sindoor may add to the natural beauty of women but they cannot forced upon her. It should be a personal choice for the women. If she is comfortable with it, she adds it to her attire. But if she does not want to wear it, then no one has a right to force it upon her. Men do not wear anything to show a symbol of their marriage. Why should only women carry a whole load of their marriage? A married Hindu woman is supposed to wear bangles, mangalsutra, sindoor, and many more accessories defined in our customs, and traditions of different communities to show that the girl is married now. A Mangalsutra does not even exist in every Hindu culture. In this blog, we will explore the conditions of the removal of mangalsutra amount to cruelty along with some case laws.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE MANGALSUTRA
In Hindu Marriage, mangalsutra and sindoor are known as the essential parts of wedding rituals, and without these, a marriage is incomplete. The groom ties the mangalsutra around the bride’s neck as a symbol of love and commitment to each other[1]. Removal of the mangalsutra by the wife sometimes may indicate her willingness not to continue her marriage as no Hindu married woman would remove the mangalsutra at any time during the lifetime of her husband.
According to Section 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955, Ceremonies for Hindu Marriage[2]. There are some ceremonies and rituals that should be performed at the time of marriage to attain the status of husband and wife. The first sub-section of this section states that at the time of marriage solemnization, the customary rites and ceremonies should be performed according to either party’s customs[3]. The second sub-section states that the Hindu marriage will be complete when both take seven steps around the holy fire jointly which is known as Saptpadi. This subsection also includes three clauses in section 7A inserted after State Amendments to Section 7[4], additional ceremonies to be performed to complete a Hindu marriage which are:
(a) The marriage should be conducted in any language understandable by parties and coney that the party takes the opposite party to be their husband and wife.
(b) Each party may put a ring on each other’s finger or Varmala around the neck of each other’s.
(c) The will be complete after the groom ties Thali around the neck of the wife.
As mentioned above Section 7 (2)(c) tying of Thali (mangal sutra) is also a part of Hindu Marriage Ceremonies, and marriage is incomplete without tying the mangal sutra.
REMOVAL OF MANGAL SUTRA AMOUNTS TO CRUELTY
As per Section 498A in The Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty. Cruelty means “any wilful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to the life, limb, or health (whether mental or physical) of the woman”[5].
Cruelty can be both physical cruelty as well as mental cruelty. In Shobha Rani v. Madhukar Reddy[6], the Supreme Court held that the cruelty may be physical or mental, intentional or unintentional. It is not necessary that only the husband can cause mental cruelty to the wife, there are cases where wives cause mental cruelty to their husbands[7].
In the landmark judgment of Mayadevi V. Jagdish[8] Prasad in February 2007 the Supreme Court held that any kind of mental cruelty faced by either of the spouses, not just the women but men as well, can apply for a divorce on the grounds of the cruelty[9].
A wife removes her Mangalsutra only after the death of the husband; therefore, its removal by the wife can said to be an act that reflects mental cruelty of the highest order, as it could hurt the sentiments of the husband. However, there are several situations in which the removal of the mangalsutra alone is not a sufficient ground for wives to get divorced. Removing the mangal sutra in aggregation and quarrel, throwing it on her husband’s face may amount to cruelty and show her willingness not to continue her marriage.
The Bombay High Court ruled that not wearing the mangalsutra all the time cannot be accepted as a ground for divorce[10].
CASE LAWS
In the case of Shri Bhaskar Das V. Smt. Renu Das[11], The marriage between the couple was done as per the Hindu marriage rituals and ceremonies. In this case, it was observed that Smt. Renu didn’t wear Sindoor and Sakha (a bangle made of conch shells) denying her marriage, and it was mental trauma on the husband’s part. The court granted divorce to the Appellant after concluding that the respondent refused to wear the ritualistic sindoor and Sakha which denotes her non-acceptance of marriage which will amount to mental cruelty[12].
The court did not make wearing Sakha and sindoor mandatory to legitimize their marriage. The judgment is for this particular case only.
In this case V. Jyothi vs. V. Suresh[13], the wife alleged that her husband had forced her to remove her mangalsutra, even though she had never considered ending their married life. There was no mental cruelty on the part of the wife, it was the husband who made a huge cry for such removal of the mangalsutra. The court held that the removal of mangalsutra alone did not amount to cruelty and dismissed the petition.
In the case of C. Sivakumar vs. A. Srividhaya[14], The husband filed for divorce on the grounds of mental cruelty. The court held that the wife’s removal of her mangalsutra indicated her not continuing the marriage. the removal of Mangalsutra at the time of separation by the wife shows her intention to dissolve the marriage. The Madras High Court held that the removal of Thali ( mangalsutra) by the wife would amount to mental cruelty of the highest order for the husband, as it hurt the sentiments of the husband. It means that Hindu married women should not remove the mangalsutra at any point of time during the lifetime of their husband. The Mangalsutra is a sacred symbol of marriage and its removal will show disrespect for the husband and the institution of marriage[15].
CONCLUSION
The cruelty can be both physical and mental either by husband or wife it can’t accepted in any condition. The removal of the mangal sutra amounts to mental cruelty and is a controversial issue as the removal of the mangal sutra by the wife shows her disrespect towards her husband and her intention to not continue her marriage. The removal of the Mangalsutra will not amount to cruelty if the wife was not wearing it from the start of the marriage or it is not in their customs and traditions. Not all wives who don’t wear mangal sutras are opposed to keeping their marriage going. The decision to wear the Mangalsutra, Sindoor, and Sakha, should be a choice of women. No one should force her to wear them.
Author(s) Name: Mahak Sahu (Lucknow University)
References:
[1] Francis Alukkas, ‘The Traditional Significance of Mangalsutra’ (The Francis Alukkas, 21 September 2021) < https://francisalukkas.com/blog/the-significance-of-mangalsutra > accessed on 14 September 2023
[2] The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, s 7
[3] Gautam Chaudhary, ‘Section 7 of Hindu Marriage Act’ (The Ipleaders, 10 September 2022) < https://blog.ipleaders.in/section-7-of-hindu-marriage-act/ > accessed on 14 September 2023
[4] The Hindu Marriage Act,1955,s 7A
[5] The Indian Penal Code, 1860, s. 498A
[6] Shobha Rani v. Madhulkar Reddi, 1988, AIR 121, 1988 SCR (1)1010
[7] Shalu Gothi, ‘Cruelty under the Hindu law’ ( The Ipleader, 11 March 2020) < https://blog.ipleaders.in/cruelty-under-the-hindu-law/ > accessed on 14 September
[8] Mayadevi v. Jagdish, 2007, AIR 2007 SC 1426
[9] Shalu Gothi, (n 7)
[10] Vaibhavv Ganjapure, ‘Not Wearing mangalsutra no ground for divorce, says HC’, The Times of India ( 3 April 2017) < https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/not-wearing-mangalsutra-no-ground-for-divorce-says-hc/articleshow/57979513.cms > accessed on 16 September 2023
[11] Shri Bhaskar Das v. Smt. Renu Das, 2020, Case No.: Mat.App. 20/2019: 2020 SCC Online Gau 2954
[12] Smaranika Sen, ‘Shri Bhaskar Das v. Smt. Renu Das’ ( The Lawsisto, 27 October 2020) < https://lawsisto.com/legalnewsread/ODUxNA==/Shri-Bhaskar-Das-v-Smti-Renu-Das > accessed on 16 September 2023
[13] V. Jyothi vs V. Suresh on 18 July, 2000 (5) ALD 158, 2000 (4) ALT 589
[14] C. Sivakumar vs. A. Srividhaya, 2021, C.M.A. Nos.1949 and 2159 of 2019
[15] Sanjeev Sirohi, ‘Removal Of Mangalsutra By Wife Mental Cruelty Of Highest Order: Madras HC’ ( The Legal service India, 16 July 2022 < https://www.legalservicesindia.com/law/article/2656/15/Removal-Of-Mangalsutra-By-Wife-Mental-Cruelty-Of-Highest-Order-Madras-HC > accessed on 16 September 2023
