Mumbai: Divorce cannot be granted on cruelty grounds based solely on WhatsApp chats without letting the other spouse rebut the evidence, the Bombay High Court has ruled.
Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande quashed a Nashik family court's May 2025 order granting a man divorce. The lower court had relied on chats where his wife allegedly demanded moving from Nashik to Pune separately and made derogatory remarks about her mother-in-law and sister-in-law, calling it emotional blackmail and pressure tactics.
The wife challenged it as ex-parte, without her chance to respond. "Merely relying on the WhatsApp chat, the divorce decree cannot be granted, since it is not proved by leading evidence," the HC stated, remanding the case for her to present arguments and evidence.
The bench urged mediation for possible settlement while the family court rehears the matter afresh.
(Inputs from PTI)