Jharkhand High Court Says Absence of FIR Does Not Discredit Cruelty Testimony

The Jharkhand High Court held that a wife’s account of matrimonial cruelty cannot be rejected merely because she did not file a police FIR.

Background

The appeal arose after a Family Court dismissed a divorce petition despite allegations of assault, abuse and expulsion from the matrimonial home. The husband had not contested the proceedings.

Legal issue and reasoning

The High Court emphasised that the absence of a criminal complaint is not, by itself, a reliable test of whether cruelty occurred. The evidence must be assessed on its own merits.

Consequence and next step

The decision requires matrimonial courts to evaluate testimony contextually rather than treat a missing FIR as a decisive contradiction.