Divorce law in India

One-sided divorce in India: process, time and what happens if your spouse does not appear

A divorce without the other spouse's consent is a contested case. This is what it needs, how it runs, what an ex parte decree is and how safe it is, and how the other side defends.

Advocate Vishu KushwahaAdvocate, District Court Ghaziabad · Checked 28 October 2026

What it is: A contested divorce filed by one spouse. "One-sided" is not a legal term; the law calls it a petition under Section 13 (Hindu Marriage Act) or the equivalent section of the other Acts.
Needs: A ground the Act recognises, proved with evidence. Unwillingness to stay married is not enough.
Time: Usually several years. No fixed minimum or maximum.
If the spouse stays away: The court can proceed ex parte after proper service and decide on your evidence alone.

When one spouse wants a divorce and the other will not agree, the only route in the Family Court is a contested petition: the spouse who wants out files, names a ground the law allows, and proves it. People call this a one-sided divorce because only one spouse asks for it. It is not quicker or simpler for being one-sided; it is the longer of the two routes, and its result depends on evidence rather than agreement. The divorce in India overview explains which Act governs your marriage.

When you can get a divorce without consent

Only on a ground. Under the Hindu Marriage Act the usual ones are cruelty, including mental cruelty, and desertion for at least two years; others include adultery, conversion, serious mental disorder and not being heard of for seven years. The other Acts have similar lists with different wording and periods, all set out in grounds for divorce in India. What the law does not accept, before the Family Court, is that the marriage has simply broken down. The Supreme Court alone can end a marriage on that basis, under Article 142 of the Constitution (Shilpa Sailesh v. Varun Sreenivasan, 2023).

A petition cannot ordinarily be filed within one year of the marriage (Section 14, Hindu Marriage Act), and a spouse cannot rely on their own wrong: the court will not grant a decree on desertion to the spouse who drove the other out (Section 23).

How the case runs

The petition. Filed in a court that has jurisdiction: where the marriage took place, where the other spouse lives, where you last lived together, or where the wife lives if she is filing (Section 19, Hindu Marriage Act). It states the ground, the facts with dates, and the relief claimed, including maintenance and custody where they are in issue.
Notice. The court issues summons. If ordinary service fails, it can order substituted service, including publication. The case does not move until the court records that notice was served.
Reconciliation. The court must first try to bring the parties together (Section 23(2), Hindu Marriage Act; Section 9, Family Courts Act) and usually refers them to mediation.
Written statement. The other spouse files a reply, and can oppose the petition and ask for relief of their own in the same case, such as judicial separation or divorce on a ground against the petitioner (Section 23A).
Issues and evidence. The court frames the questions to decide. Each side gives evidence, usually by affidavit, and is cross-examined. Documents, messages, police and medical records and earlier orders come in here.
Arguments and decree. Then a 30-day window to appeal to the High Court (Section 19, Family Courts Act).

Alongside, either spouse can apply for maintenance during the case and litigation expenses (Section 24), and for interim custody and visiting rights (Section 26). These are usually decided within months, long before the divorce itself.

If the other spouse never appears: ex parte divorce

A spouse who has been properly served but stays away cannot stall the case. The court can set them ex parte, hear the petitioner's evidence alone and, if the ground is proved on that evidence, pass a decree. It still has to be proved; the court does not grant a divorce merely because the other side is absent.

The weak point of an ex parte decree is service. Under Order IX Rule 13 of the Code of Civil Procedure the absent spouse can ask the same court to set the decree aside by showing that the summons was not duly served or that there was sufficient cause for not appearing. The time limit is 30 days from the decree, or, where the summons was not served, 30 days from when the spouse learnt of it (Article 123, Limitation Act). A decree obtained by sending notice to an address the petitioner knew was wrong is the kind that gets set aside, sometimes after the petitioner has remarried. Getting service right at the start is what makes an ex parte decree hold.

How long it takes

There is no statutory timetable. Most contested divorces take several years, and the time goes into four places: serving notice, mediation, the evidence of both sides, and the court's workload. Cases where the other spouse never appears move faster, because there is no cross-examination. Cases with parallel criminal, maintenance or domestic violence proceedings move slower. Anyone who promises a date for a contested decree is promising something no advocate controls. Many contested cases end sooner because the spouses settle and convert the case into a mutual consent petition.

If you are the spouse being divorced

Do not ignore the summons. File a written statement that answers each allegation, because facts left unanswered can be taken as admitted, and decide early whether you are opposing the divorce or only its terms. You can claim maintenance and litigation expenses during the case, and custody or visiting rights. If the case has been filed far from where you live and you are the wife, the Supreme Court often transfers matrimonial cases to the wife's district on a transfer petition. If a decree has already been passed without notice to you, act within the 30-day limit described above.

What wins and loses these cases

Contested divorces turn on the petition and the evidence. A petition that pleads the ground in general words ("she was cruel to me") and gives no incidents, dates or witnesses is hard to prove, because the court can rely only on what was pleaded. Documents made at the time, such as complaints, medical records, messages and letters, carry more weight than recollection years later. The Family Court may receive material that would not be admissible in an ordinary civil trial (Section 14, Family Courts Act), but every allegation will be tested in cross-examination, and exaggeration damages credibility on the points that are true.

After the decree

Either side can appeal to the High Court within 30 days. Remarriage is lawful once no appeal can be filed or the appeal has been dismissed (Section 15, Hindu Marriage Act); remarrying while an appeal is pending risks a void marriage. Keep the certified copy of the decree, which is needed for a passport, a fresh marriage registration and property records.

Questions people ask

What happens if my spouse does not come to court?

Once the court is satisfied that notice was properly served, it can proceed ex parte: it hears your evidence without the other side and can pass a decree if the ground is proved. The absent spouse can apply under Order IX Rule 13 of the Code of Civil Procedure to set the decree aside, within 30 days of the decree or of learning of it where notice was not served, by showing that service was defective or that there was sufficient cause for not appearing.

What if I do not know where my spouse lives?

The court tries ordinary service first, at the last known address, and can then order substituted service, including publication in a newspaper. If the spouse has not been heard of as alive for seven years, that is itself a ground for divorce.

Can a one-sided divorce be done in six months?

Rarely. The six-month timetable belongs to mutual consent. A contested case needs notice, an attempt at settlement, pleadings, evidence and arguments, and most take several years. An ex parte case, where the other spouse never appears, can be quicker, but the decree is only as safe as the service of notice behind it.

Can a husband get a divorce if the wife refuses?

Yes, if he proves a ground under the Act that governs the marriage, such as cruelty or desertion for two years. Her refusal to agree does not stop a contested case; it only rules out mutual consent.

Can a contested divorce be converted into a mutual consent divorce?

Yes. If the spouses settle, usually in mediation, they can file a joint petition for mutual consent and withdraw or dispose of the contested case. The court can take into account the time already spent apart when deciding whether to waive the six-month wait.

A contested divorce in Ghaziabad

Whether you are filing or answering a petition, bring the marriage papers, any summons or order, and a note of the events with dates. Chamber 817, District Court Complex, Raj Nagar District Centre (RDC), Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh 201002. Monday to Saturday, 9 am to 9 pm.

Call +91 98710 27648

General information about the law, not advice on your case. See the Bar Council disclaimer.