Failure to disclose mental disorder before marriage constitutes fraud: Delhi High Court

Failure to disclose mental disorder before marriage constitutes fraud, the Delhi High Court held on Friday while annulling a marriage solemnized 16 years ago. .A Division Bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Jasmeet Singh also observed that in this long-drawn process, the life of husband has been ruined and he has remained stuck in a relationship without any resolution for 16 years thereby losing most important of years of his life when “he would have, otherwise, enjoyed marital and conjugal bliss and satisfaction”..“The failure on the part of the respondent (wife) to disclose her mental disorder before her marriage with the appellant (husband) – as alleged by him, constituted a fraud perpetrated upon the appellant,” the bench said in its judgment..The Court was dealing with a petition filed by one Sandeep Aggarwal challenging the family court order where his request for divorce under Section 12 of the Hindu Marriage Act was dismissed. The petitioner argued that he had married a girl in December 2005. However, her family did not disclose the vital information that she was suffering from Acute Schizophrenia.The petitioner husband added that she behaved in a very “unusual manner” during her stay at her matrimonial home and honeymoon. He then took her to several doctors including a Neuropsychiatrist at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) who disclosed that the girl was suffering from Schizophrenia.As the petitioner confronted the bride’s family, they took her home, just nine weeks after marriage. The Court was told that the wedding was never consummated.In her written statement, the wife told the Court that she never suffered from any mental illness. The statement, however, added that she did suffer from headaches during her college days due to which she gave up her studies and the same was communicated to her husband’s family..In its judgment, the Court noted that the woman had outrightly denied going through an evaluation by a Court appointed medical board which would weigh on its mind. This outright refusal, the Court said, prevented it from arriving at the truth.“The refusal by the respondent to undergo medical examination by the Medical Board of experts leads to the inference that she was not prepared to face the Medical Board as that could have exposed the condition of her mental well-being, and would have established the allegation made by the appellant that she was suffering from Schizophrenia,” the Court noted.The Bench, therefore, said that it will draw an adverse inference against the respondent wife that she is suffering from Schizophrenia..The Court added that the fact that the parties could not live together beyond nine weeks shows that the mental disorder suffered by respondent wife is of a kind and to such extent as be unfit for marriage and procreation of children.The Bench further observed that neither the husband nor his family was informed about the mental disorder which was passed off as mere headache.“The respondent has not specifically averred, or established, that the appellant was made aware of the mental disorder suffered by the respondent, which was passed-off by her as mere “headaches”. Headaches by themselves are not a disease. They are only symptoms of a disease. The respondent does not state what caused her such serious and frequent headaches, which debilitated her from completing her studies,” the Court said.The Court, therefore, allowed the appeal and annulled the marriage. It further granted a token cost of ₹10,000 to the petitioner husband..While advocate Asutosh Lohia appeared for the petitioner, the respondent was represented by advocate Mohan Lal..[Read Judgment]