In a significant judgement, the Supreme Court of India recently stated that a wife's career choice can't be deemed 'cruelty' just because it has hurt the sentiments of her husband and in-laws. This ruling came against the backdrop of a divorce case where the wife wished to establish her own dental clinic in Ahmedabad, while her husband wanted her to accompany him and reside with him in the city where he was employed.
The Supreme Court in its judgement (case no. 2026 INSC 475) observed that the woman's husband and in-laws opposed her decision to use her professional qualifications for the clinic business simply because it did not align with their expectation that she should abandon her ambitions and relocate with her husband to his remote place of posting. The Supreme Court said that this disapproval reflects a deeply regressive mindset incompatible with modern constitutional values.
