Emphasizing that women preserve their sexual independence even after marriage, the Madras High Court has decided a wife&ampamp;’s act of watching pornography and masturbating does not provide cause for divorce.
After a man from Tamil Nadu questioned a lower court&’s ruling denying his request for divorce, the judgement was issued. He contended that his wife was cruel in referring to her supposed dependency on self-pleasure while viewing adult materials.
The high court nevertheless rejected his appeal, saying that “self-pleasure is not forbidden fruit.”
Masturbation is Natural for Both Genders, Says Court
The court remarked in its judgment, according to AFP, that if men’s masturbation is accepted to be typical, women’s masturbation cannot be stigmatized.
The court went on to say that marriage does not delete a woman’s individuality; she maintains her uniqueness even after marriage and her essential identity as a woman is not consumed by her spousal status.
Addiction to Pornography Not a Legal Ground for Divorce
Though the court recognized that a pornography habit is “wrong” and can’t be “morally justifiable,” it found it doesn’t exceed the legal level for divorce.
Divorce Remains a Taboo in India
In India, deeply ingrained social and family expectations help to keep divorce relatively uncommon. One of the lowest divorce rates worldwide is seen in statistics showing that only one in hundred marriages ends in divorce.
