Sridhar Reddy: Supreme Court Rejects Foreign Divorce Decrees. The Supreme Court of India has firmly ruled that divorce decrees obtained from foreign courts are not valid under Indian law, especially when the marriage was performed according to Hindu traditions. The court expressed strong displeasure over the growing trend of couples marrying in India and then seeking divorce abroad. The judges clarified that any marriage solemnized under the Hindu Marriage Act must be annulled through Indian courts, and foreign court orders hold no legal ground in such matters.
This landmark ruling emerged from the Sridhar Reddy case, originating in Andhra Pradesh. Reddy married his wife in 2003 following Indian traditions before moving to the United Kingdom. The couple had a son, but marital conflicts arose. After failing to secure a divorce from the Sattenapalli court in India, Reddy filed for divorce through the Cambridge County Court in the UK in 2014. Subsequently, he remarried in the UK without dissolving his first marriage.
His first wife filed a police complaint, leading to bigamy charges against Sridhar Reddy. When the case reached the Supreme Court, Reddy argued that the foreign divorce decree should be recognized. However, the bench rejected this argument outright, reaffirming that marriages under the Hindu Marriage Act can only be dissolved by the same Act. The judges made it clear that foreign divorce orders do not apply here.
This verdict serves as a major setback for individuals attempting to bypass Indian legal procedures by seeking quick divorces abroad. The court emphasized that all divorce proceedings for marriages performed in India must go through Indian courts. The criminal case against Sridhar Reddy for bigamy will continue, as the Supreme Court offered no relief. In conclusion, this judgment reinforces the primacy of Indian marriage laws and closes a loophole for those wishing to escape legal accountability.