Actress Sukanya’s divorce case took a new turn

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Actress Sukanya’s divorce case took a new turn when it was taken up at the the Supreme Court with her US-based husband R. Sridharan on Monday raising questions over the applicability of the Hindu Marriage Act to him for his being a US national and the marriage was solemnized in America.

The couple got married in the US on March 17, 2002.The marriage was performed in the Balaji Temple at New Jersey as per Hindu rites and customs, After their relationship soured, Sukanya had filed a divorce suit on March 3, 2004.

A bench of Justice P. Sathasivam and B.S. Chauhan Admitting Sridharan’s appeal against the Madras high court order rejecting his petition stayed the proceedings in the Chennai family court on Sukanya’s divorce petition, while issuing notice to her.

Sukanya was directed to submit her reply by August 18 when the apex court would take up Sridharan’s special leave petition for further hearing.

According to the plea, their marriage was registered in the US on July 30, 2002 under the US laws as he was a citizen of America living there since 1992 and working there as an IT professional.

After Sukanya allegedly aborted her pregnancy without his consent Sridharan alleged that their marriage went sour and Sukanya had returned to India in January 2003 on the pretext of working in some TV serial and “refused” to rejoin him. On the other hand, Sukayna had sought divorce on the ground of “cruelty” in his behavior.



It is a well settled law that in order to apply the provision of the Hindu Marriage Act, both the parties must be domiciles of India and it is not enough that only one of the parties is a domicile of India,” Sridharan contended, seeking quashing of the divorce suit against him in the Chennai family court.

At the most, if at all any Indian law was applicable to him in the divorce suit, it could only be the Foreign Marriage Act of 1969, his lawyer said.