{"id":31734,"date":"2026-09-06T11:19:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T11:19:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/?p=31734"},"modified":"2026-09-06T11:55:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-06T11:55:59","slug":"section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/","title":{"rendered":"Section 13(2)(iii) Hindu Marriage Act: Unequal Divorce Rights and Gender Equality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h1 id=\"h-the-paradoxical-architecture-of-conjugal-partnership-equal-marriage-unequal-exit\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Paradoxical_Architecture_of_Conjugal_Partnership_Equal_Marriage_Unequal_Exit\"><\/span>The Paradoxical Architecture of Conjugal Partnership: Equal Marriage, Unequal Exit<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our Constitution promises equality. But does equality, as promised by the constitution, truly exist in our everyday lives? Are the rights guaranteed to us available to everyone in equal measure? In a society where law, social norms, and lived realities constantly intersect, can we really say that we all are equal? And perhaps the more uncomfortable question is this: does equality survive even within the most intimate and socially revered institution of all \u2013 marriage?<\/p><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_87 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #0c0c0c;color:#0c0c0c\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #0c0c0c;color:#0c0c0c\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#The_Paradoxical_Architecture_of_Conjugal_Partnership_Equal_Marriage_Unequal_Exit\" >The Paradoxical Architecture of Conjugal Partnership: Equal Marriage, Unequal Exit<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#Introduction\" >Introduction<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#Built_on_Assumptions_The_Historical_Roots_of_Gendered_Exit\" >Built on Assumptions: The Historical Roots of Gendered Exit<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#Renovating_the_Structure_Progress_Toward_Equality_in_Matrimonial_Law\" >Renovating the Structure: Progress Toward Equality in Matrimonial Law<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#Dismissed_Not_Decided_A_Constitutional_Question_Deferred\" >Dismissed, Not Decided: A Constitutional Question Deferred<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#An_Unfinished_Conversation\" >An Unfinished Conversation<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/section-13-2-3-hindu-marriage-act-gender-equality-divorce\/#References\" >References<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"h-introduction\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Introduction\"><\/span>Introduction<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In our Hindu law, marriage has traditionally been regarded as a sacred union of two individuals and, in a deeper sense, of two souls. It is conceived not merely as a social contract but as a sacrament (samskara), within which both spouses are expected to participate as equals and to discharge their respective religious, moral, and social duties. Yet, when the question shifts from entering into marriage to exiting it, the legal framework appears to depart from this foundational premise. The principles of equality and reciprocity that ostensibly animate the marital relationship do not operate with equal force at the point of dissolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is against this backdrop that section 13(2)(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, permits a wife to seek a divorce where a decree or order for maintenance has been passed in her favour against the husband, and the parties have not resumed cohabitation for a period of one year or more thereafter.<sup>[1]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This inequality in the architecture of marital exit is neither recent nor incidental; it has been embedded in the Hindu Marriage Act since its enactment in 1955. This, however, raises a fundamental constitutional question: how can a gender-specific provision governing the dissolution of marriage coexist with a constitutional guarantee of equality? The tension becomes particularly significant when viewed against Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law and equal protection to the laws.<sup>[2]<\/sup> The constitutional validity and gender asymmetry of Section 13(2)(iii) were recently brought before the apex court, with a challenge seeking to make the provision gender neutral. Yet, the Court declined to entertain the challenge, leaving the underlying question of equality unresolved.<sup>[3]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"h-built-on-assumptions-the-historical-roots-of-gendered-exit\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Built_on_Assumptions_The_Historical_Roots_of_Gendered_Exit\"><\/span>Built on Assumptions: The Historical Roots of Gendered Exit<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Section 13(2)(iii) was introduced through the Hindu Marriage (Amendment) Act, 1976, with the protective objective of providing women with a meaningful legal avenue to exit marriages that had effectively broken down.<sup>[4]<\/sup> The provision was rooted in a particular social reality: that women were more likely to experience economic dependence, social vulnerability, and the consequences of marital breakdown more acutely than men. Its gender-specific character, therefore, was conceived not as an assertion of inequality but as a form of protective legislation intended to address an existing social disadvantage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">India, however, has witnessed a significant transformation in the position of women since 1976. Over the decades, women\u2019s status has evolved not only socially and economically but also within the legal and political spheres. The legal framework has progressively recognised and expanded women\u2019s rights, autonomy, dignity, and participation in public life. Women have increasingly entered the workforce, contributed to socio-economic development, assumed positions of responsibility, and asserted their presence in political and public institutions. Their role in contemporary Indian society can no longer be understood solely through the traditional paradigm of economic dependence and domestic vulnerability that informed much of the protective legislation of the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This transformation does not suggest that gender-based disadvantage has disappeared from Indian society. Women continue to experience structural inequalities across several spheres of life. Nevertheless, the changing social, economic, and legal position of women has significantly altered the context within which gender-specific protective provisions operate. What may once have been understood as a necessary legislative response to women&#8217;s structural vulnerability now exists within a constitutional and social landscape that increasingly recognizes women as autonomous rights-bearing individuals. Section 13(2)(iii), however, continues to retain the gender-specific architecture with which it was introduced, reflecting a legislative assumption about vulnerability that has remained largely unchanged despite the transformation of the social conditions surrounding it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"h-renovating-the-structure-progress-toward-equality-in-matrimonial-law\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Renovating_the_Structure_Progress_Toward_Equality_in_Matrimonial_Law\"><\/span>Renovating the Structure: Progress Toward Equality in Matrimonial Law<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Matrimonial law in India has moved toward gender neutrality on more than one front. When the Hindu Marriage Act was enacted in 1955, it recognised divorce only on fault-based grounds such as cruelty, adultery, and desertion. Parliament changed this in 1976 by introducing Section 13B, allowing divorce by mutual consent, a ground available equally to both spouses, requiring no allegation of fault on either side.<sup>[5]<\/sup> Section 24 of the Act goes further still, permitting either the wife or the husband to claim interim maintenance and litigation costs where they lack sufficient independent income.<sup>[6]<\/sup> In doing so, the provision acknowledges what Section 13(2)(iii) does not: that financial vulnerability during matrimonial litigation is not confined to one gender, and that courts must weigh the income of both parties rather than presuming dependency along gendered lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The judiciary has reinforced this trajectory in more consequential ways. The Supreme Court&#8217;s decision striking instant triple talaq marked a significant step in recognising dignity and equality within personal law, even where religious practice was invoked in its defence.<sup>[7]<\/sup> In Joseph Shine v. Union of India (2018), the Court went further, striking down Section 497 IPC&#8217;s adultery provision for treating the wife as her husband&#8217;s property and permitting prosecution only by the husband, establishing that a provision&#8217;s gender-specific design, however longstanding or historically justified, cannot survive constitutional scrutiny once shown to be discriminatory rather than protective.<sup>[8]<\/sup> In Jyoti @ Kittu v. State (NCT of Delhi) (2025), the Delhi High Court extended this reasoning beyond criminal law altogether, recognising that men, too, are entitled to protection from cruelty and violence within a marriage.<sup>[9]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Section 13(2)(iii), however, has remained conspicuously untouched by this trajectory; its architecture is unchanged even as the law around it has moved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"h-dismissed-not-decided-a-constitutional-question-deferred\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Dismissed_Not_Decided_A_Constitutional_Question_Deferred\"><\/span>Dismissed, Not Decided: A Constitutional Question Deferred<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In May 2026, Jitender Singh, a law student, approached the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Indian Constitution by way of a Public Interest Litigation, challenging Section 13(2)(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, which permits only a wife to seek divorce in the circumstances prescribed under the provision. The petitioner argued that the provision ought to be made equally available to both husbands and wives, contending that its gender-specific character violates the constitutional guarantee of equality under Article 14 of the Constitution. The matter was heard by a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi. During the hearing, the court questioned the petitioner as to how he was personally affected by the provision. The petitioner subsequently disclosed that he had himself been involved in a matrimonial dispute.<sup>[10]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Court, however, did not proceed to examine the constitutional validity of Section 13(2)(iii) in depth. Justice Joymalya Bagchi observed that the provision constitutes a special provision for women and that Article 15(3) of the Constitution permits the State to make special provisions for women and children.<sup>[11]<\/sup> Article 15(3) operates as an exception to the general prohibition on discrimination contained in Article 15(1); it recognises that women and children may require differentiated legal treatment to address historical and structural disadvantage and permits the State to enact provisions in their favour without such provisions being rendered unconstitutional merely for being gender specific. The court ultimately dismissed the petition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the gender-specific nature of Section 13(2)(iii) cannot be understood solely through the lens of the recent constitutional challenge. Its asymmetry has also been judicially justified on the basis of the historical purpose for which the provision was introduced. In Satinder Singh v. Bhupinder Kaur (2010), the Delhi High Court referred to the recommendation of the Law Commission in its 59th Report, pursuant to which Section 13(2)(iii) was introduced as an additional ground of divorce available to the wife.<sup>[12]<\/sup> The Court observed that the provision was intended to give a wife the right to seek divorce where, despite an order of maintenance having been passed in her favour, the husband continued to neglect or fail to maintain her. The requirement that the parties must not have resumed cohabitation for one year or more was understood as an indication that the marital relationship had effectively ceased to exist and that the husband had ceased to value the society of the wife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Court further explained the rationale for not extending the provision to husbands. It noted that an erring husband who deliberately failed to comply with a maintenance order could not be permitted to rely upon his own default as a means of obtaining divorce. The Court referred to the concern that, if the provision were made equally available to husbands, a husband seeking to rid himself of the marriage could deliberately neglect his wife, compel her to seek maintenance, and thereafter use the existence of the maintenance order and the passage of one year without cohabitation as a route to obtain divorce. In this sense, the gender-specific nature of the provision was justified as a mechanism to prevent an erring husband from benefiting from his own wrongdoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The reasoning in Satinder Singh therefore provides a significant historical and judicial justification for the asymmetry embedded in Section 13(2)(iii): the provision was designed not merely to confer a preferential right upon women but to protect a wife from the consequences of a husband&#8217;s continued neglect and to prevent the wrongdoer from converting his own default into a ground for divorce. Yet, this justification also brings the central tension within the provision into sharper focus. The question is no longer merely whether the provision was justified when it was introduced, but whether that justification necessarily requires the statutory right to remain permanently gender-specific, or whether the law could instead be structured around the identity of the wrongdoer and the vulnerability of the affected spouse rather than simply around whether the claimant is a husband or a wife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"h-an-unfinished-conversation\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"An_Unfinished_Conversation\"><\/span>An Unfinished Conversation<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Section 13(2)(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, exists because of a real vulnerability: the social reality that women, often trapped in relationships where their husbands offered them neither support nor dignity, needed a way out. But the India of 1955 is not the India of 2026. Women&#8217;s status has transformed socially, economically, and legally since this provision was first enacted. Perhaps, then, it is time for this provision, too, to transform into something gender-neutral.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Neutrality, or equality, does not mean treating husband and wife as identical in every respect. It means shifting the law&#8217;s focus away from gender itself and toward the actual vulnerability of the party seeking relief regardless of whether that party is the husband or the wife. Whether this change comes through Parliament or through a future bench willing to engage with the merits, the underlying principle should be the same: protection tied to need, not to gender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"h-references\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"References\"><\/span>References<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, s. 13(2)(iii).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Constitution of India, 1950, art. 14.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Jitender Singh v. Union of India, W.P.(C) No. 460\/2026 (S.C., decided 11 May 2026).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Hindu Marriage (Amendment) Act, 1976; Law Commission of India, 59th Report on Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and Special Marriage Act, 1954 (1974).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, s. 13-B (inserted by the Marriage Laws (Amendment) Act, 1976).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, s. 24.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Shayara Bano v. Union of India, (2017) 9 SCC 1.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Joseph Shine v. Union of India, AIR 2018 SC 4898.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Jyoti @ Kittu v. State (NCT of Delhi), Bail Appln. 262\/2025 (Del. H.C., decided 22 January 2025).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Jitender Singh v. Union of India, W.P.(C) No. 460\/2026 (S.C., decided 11 May 2026).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Constitution of India, 1950, art. 15(3).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Satinder Singh v. Bhupinder Kaur, CM(M) 652\/2010 &amp; CM APPL. 8932\/2010 (Del. H.C., decided 13 May 2010, Aruna Suresh, J.).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-yoast-seo-related-links yoast-seo-related-links\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/marriage-registration-india-documents-procedure-witness-rules-delhi\/\">Marriage Registration in India 2026: Documents, Procedure, Witness Rules, Supreme Court Guidelines &amp; Delhi Requirements<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/how-to-file-maintenance-case-india\/\">How to File a Maintenance Case in India (2026): Complete Step-by-Step Legal Guide Under the BNSS, HMA &amp; DV Act<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/changing-status-of-women-india-since-the-constitution-of-1950\/\">Changing Status of Women in India Since the Constitution of 1950: Progress, Gaps and Continuing Challenges<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/bombay-high-court-maintenance-without-proven-cruelty-section-125-crpc\/\">Bombay High Court: Husband Can Be Ordered to Pay Maintenance Even Without Proven Cruelty | Section 125 CrPC Explained<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalserviceindia.com\/Legal-Articles\/law-without-equality-organized-will-of-the-stronger-party-cji-surya-kant\/\">Law Without Equality Is Merely the Organised Will of the Stronger Party: Constitutional Analysis of CJI Surya Kant&#8217;s Historic Statement<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Also Read: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalservicesindia.com\/can-america-reform-the-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Can America Reform the Supreme Court? Latest 5\u20134 Ruling Reignites Term Limits Debate<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Paradoxical Architecture of Conjugal Partnership: Equal Marriage, Unequal Exit Our Constitution promises equality. But does equality, as promised by the constitution, truly exist in our everyday lives? Are the rights guaranteed to us available to everyone in equal measure? In a society where law, social norms, and lived realities constantly intersect, can we really<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1796,"featured_media":31735,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"two_page_speed":[],"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"_joinchat":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[7218,5160],"class_list":["post-31734","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-family-law","tag-family-law","tag-picks"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.4 (Yoast SEO v28.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Section 13(2)(iii) Hindu Marriage Act: Unequal Divorce Rights and Gender Equality - Legal Service India - Articles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Section 13(2)(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act gives wives a special divorce right. 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