Sex is an important part of a successful marriage and it increases closeness in the relationship between husband and wife. A marriage that lacks intimacy can be a major problem in the relationship, and can lead to feelings of frustration and resentment. Therefore, if one spouse completely stops having sex, it can be considered cruelty towards the other spouse.
According to law, a wife cannot refuse her husband to have sex, and refusing sex is a violation of the Hindu Marriage Act and the laws of other religions, and is also a ground for divorce.
The husband cannot be made to suffer
through no fault of his own and deprived of his natural desire to enjoy sexual
pleasure if the wife is not willing to share the bed and perform her duties.
If
the wife is not supporting her husband for the enjoyment of life and is
refusing the relationship, then the husband can seek divorce by filing a
divorce petition before the family Court on this ground.
Under
the Hindu Marriage Act, if one of the parties is impotent, unable to consummate
the marriage, or otherwise unfit to have children, then the marriage can be subsequently
annulled.
Importance
of Sex in Marriage?
➧Sex
plays an important role in marriage as it enhances hormones which increases
emotional bonding, and in the absence of sex , a couple can become emotionally
distant from each other due to lack of physical intimacy.
➧One
of the important pillars of the marriage is sexual intercourse, and if there is
not vigorous and harmonious sexual activity between the spouses, then the
marriage will fail.
➧The
purpose of a marriage is marital sex, when one party to the marriage does not
achieve this goal; it may lead to the dissolution of the marriage on the basis
of sexless marriage, and this why the law considers impotence as a ground for
invalidating a marriage.
➧Marriage
in the legal sense means that there will be sex, stopping it is considered a
divorceable offence.
👉Refusal
to have sex with spouse
👉Physical
attack on spouse
👉Persistent
anger or irritability at spouse
👉Demand
of dowry
👉Falsely
accusing the other spouse of adultery
👉Living
separately without any valid reason
👉Coldness/bitterness/neglect
👉Constant
threats of suicide or attempts to commit suicide
👉Having
adulterous /extra-marital affairs
👉Hiding
facts from the other spouse during marriage
👉Filing
multiple false cases against the spouse and his/her family members
The Supreme Court in the case of Samar Ghosh Versus Jaya Ghosh (2007)4 SCC 511, observed that “undoubtedly, not allowing one’s spouse to have sexual intercourse for a long period of time without any sufficient reason is tantamount to mental cruelty towards the spouse”.
Similarly, the refusal to bear children and the subsequent refusal of sexual intercourse and frigidity, which is harmful to the husband’s health and the practice of the husband interrupting sexual intercourse against the desire of his wife, even if she wants to bear a child, is considered cruelty.
The
Delhi High Court in the case of Shakuntala Kumari Versus Om Prakash Ghai (AIR
1983 Delhi 53) held that a normal and healthy sexual relationship is one of the
basic elements of a happy and harmonious marriage. If this is not possible due
to the ill health of one of the spouses, this may or may not amount to cruelty
depending on the circumstances of the case. But deliberate denial of sexual
intercourse by a spouse when the other spouse is eager for it would amount to
mental cruelty.
The
Delhi High Court in an another case of Rita Nijhawan Verus Balakishan Nijhawan (AIR
1973 Delhi 200) held that the marriage without sex is a curse. Sex is the
foundation of marriage and without vigorous and harmonious sexual activity any
marriage would be impossible to continue for a long time. It cannot be denied
that sexual activity in marriage has very favorable effect on the mind and body
of woman. The result is that if she does not get proper sexual satisfaction it
will lead to depression and frustration.
It has been said that the sexual
relations when happy and harmonious vivified woman’s brain, develops her
character and triple her vitality. It must be recognized that nothing is more
fatal to marriage than disappointment in sexual intercourse.
A Sexless marriage is not one in which the
couple is not being consistently intimate, but rather one in which sexual
relations are repeatedly ignored and the couple experiences long periods of
time without any intimate activity. If one spouse is withholding sex or using
it as a weapon then this is immediate grounds for divorce.
However,
as per the order of Patna High Court in the case of Prakash Kishore Versus
Smt.Putul Devi, Sex is the foundation and bedrock of a marriage and refusal to
have sexual intercourse within marriage can be cruelty in itself as a ground
for divorce under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. But inability to
conceive despite physical relations cannot be considered as cruelty and is not
one of the grounds for divorce.
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