Divorce law for people of all faiths is the same, BJP leader's PIL in SC

New Delhi, 16 August 2020 Sunday

An application has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking application of 'equal basis of divorce' for all citizens of the country. The law on divorce states that equality is in line with the spirit of the Constitution and international law.

The petition, filed by BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, seeks directions to the Center to take steps to remove the inconsistency of the divorce law and the same law for all citizens. There should be no discrimination on the basis of religion, race, sex or place of birth.

"It may be declared by the court that discriminatory grounds for divorce are in violation of Sections 14, 15, 21 and guidelines may be prepared on an equal basis for all citizens," the petition said.

The petition states that as an alternative, the court may recommend to the Law Commission the same law within three months in the spirit of divorce laws and Articles 14,15,21,44 and international law.

The petition states that Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Jains seek divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act 1955. Muslims, Christians and Parsis follow personal law.

Couples of different religions seek divorce under the Special Marriage Act 1956. If one of the two is a foreign national, he or she is divorced under the Foreign Marriage Act 1969. Therefore, the basis of divorce is neither gender nor religiously neutral.