New Delhi, August 26: Divorce between estranged couple approved by khap panchayats (caste council) will have no legal sanctity, the Supreme Court has ruled.
A Bench of Justices P Sathasivam and B S Chauhan upeld an Allahabad High Court judgement that had quashed a Varanasi Family Court’s ruling that divorce between Mahendra Nath Yadav and Sheela Devi had become effective since it had been approved by the khap panchayat.
“The High Court has rightly held that dissolution of marriage through panchayat as per custom prevailing in that area and in that community cannot be a ground for granting divorce under Section 13 (desertion or cruelty) of the Act, 1955.
–Agencies