In a bizarre case, the Telangana High Court has granted divorce to a woman who had appealed that her husband had cited the wrong date of birth, leading to a horoscope mismatch. The HC has held that in case of arranged marriages, the deliberate false information regarding dates of birth, leading to a horoscope mismatch, amounts to ‘fraud’.
A Division Bench comprising Justice K Lakshman and Justice BR Madhusudhan Rao allowed the wife’s appeal for divorce and quashed a Family Court order that had dismissed her petition under Section 12(1)(c) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The couple got married in 2018. The wife had found out later that her husband’s actual date of birth was February 9, 1974, but he had provided false details in the matrimonial website and subsequent contacts, falsely claiming that his date of birth was February 9, 1981.
The husband had deliberately hidden his actual age, leading the woman’s family to believe that he was at least 7 years younger. The wife stated that she hails from a very orthodox family that laid a lot of emphasis on horoscope compatibility, and she and her family were made to match a horoscope based on false information. She only learned of the husband’s actual date of birth months after the marriage, when the couple went to officially register their marriage, and was shocked to realise that she had been deceived.
The Bench observed that the misrepresentation caused the wife’s consent under a mistaken and false belief about age compatibility and astrological alignment, constituting fraud. Both parties expressed no interest in continuing the marriage during the hearing.
While granting the decree of divorce, the HC noted that the issues of permanent alimony, return of gold ornaments, and settlement will be pursued in appropriate forums, including pending domestic violence proceedings that the wife has against the husband.
