Bombay High Court Rules Marriage Ceremony Location Determines Divorce Petition Jurisdiction

The Bombay High Court has ruled that the family court where a marriage ceremony took place, and not the wedding reception venue, has jurisdiction to hear a divorce petition filed by a couple. The case involved a couple who married in Jodhpur, Rajasthan in 2015 according to Hindu Vedic rites and later held a reception in Mumbai, before relocating to the United States where they resided for most of their married life.

In 2019, the couple began living separately while still in the US. The following year, the husband filed for divorce in the Mumbai family court. However, the wife challenged the court's jurisdiction, arguing that the competent court should be determined by the location of the marriage ceremony itself, not the reception.

The Bombay High Court agreed with the wife's argument, noting that a wedding reception cannot be considered part of the marriage ritual. The court observed that the couple's last shared residence was in the US, not Mumbai, and their brief stay of less than 10 days at the husband's parents' home in Mumbai after the wedding did not establish jurisdiction for the family court there.

Why this matters: This ruling clarifies the appropriate jurisdiction for divorce cases involving couples who married in one location but later resided elsewhere. It emphasizes the legal significance of the marriage ceremony itself in determining which family court has the authority to hear a divorce petition.

Setting aside the Mumbai family court's order, the High Court ultimately ruled that it lacked jurisdiction under Section 19(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act to entertain the husband's divorce petition. "The court held that the last shared residence of the couple was in the USA, not Mumbai, and therefore the family court in Mumbai did not have jurisdiction under Section 19(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act to entertain the divorce petition filed by the husband," the court stated in its judgment.

Key Takeaways

• Bombay HC rules wedding reception not part of marriage ritual
• Family court where marriage took place, not reception, has jurisdiction
• Couple married in Jodhpur, held reception in Mumbai, then lived in US
• Husband filed for divorce in Mumbai, but wife challenged jurisdiction
• HC ruled Mumbai family court lacked jurisdiction under Hindu Marriage Act