The Kerala High Court, while dealing with a divorce case, orally stated that women are not slaves of their mothers and mothers-in-law, maintaining that their decisions are not "inferior" to them. Justice Devan Ramachandran made the statement on Thursday while reviewing a family court judgment that dismissed the petitioner's divorce petition calling her complaints as "ordinary wear and tear."
The same order also insisted the parties (estranged spouses) act in line with the "sanctity of married life by burying their difference of opinion", as per a report on IANS.
However, the High Court noted that the family court order was problematic and patriarchal. "To the core, patriarchal. I'm sorry, but that's not the way the ethos of 2023 continues," Ramachandran added.
In fact, the separated husband's counsel pointed out that the family court order called the wife to listen to what her mother and mother-in-law had to say on the subject.
Ramachandran remarked a woman's decisions cannot be treated as inferior to her mother's or that of her mother-in-law. "Women are not slaves of their mothers or mothers-in-law," observed Ramachandran.
The judge also rejected the husband's lawyer's contention that the issues at hand were easily solvable and could be resolved outside of court.
Justice Ramachandran emphasized that he could only facilitate an out-of-court settlement if the woman expressed a willingness to consider the option. He said, the woman has her own mind. Can you forcibly impose mediation on her? Such behavior might be why she was forced to leave you.
"Behave well, be a man," the judge remarked.
The Court was addressing a request from the woman to transfer the divorce case, currently under consideration at a family court in Kottarakara, to a family court in Thalasserry. The latter was in closer proximity to Mahe, where she had relocated with her child, who was born out of wedlock, for employment purposes.