Short tempered wife not wiling to divorce. How can I get divorce?

Indian legal System prescribes different laws for divorce for people belonging to different religions. Assuming you both are Hindus and are governed by the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, then you can seek divorce from your wife based on the various grounds enumerated in Section 13 of the Act.

Grounds for Divorce under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 are as follows:

Adultery / Cruelty / Desertion / Conversion to another religion / Mental Disorder / Leprosy / Venereal Disease / Renunciation / Not Heard Alive / No Resumption of Co-habitation.

As per our understanding of the facts presented by you, you may file a Divorce petition citing Cruelty as a ground under Section 13(1)(ia) of the HMA:

Under Section 13(1)(ia) the term cruelty includes mental as well as physical cruelty. Mental cruelty has been elaborated upon by the Supreme Court of India to include:

“Mental cruelty may consist of verbal abuses and insults by using filthy and abusive language leading to constant disturbance of mental peace of the other party. The Court dealing with the petition for divorce on the ground of cruelty has to bear in mind that the problems before it are those of human beings and the psychological changes in a spouse's conduct have to be borne in mind before disposing of the petition for divorce.

However, insignificant or trifling, such conduct may cause pain in the mind of another. But before the conduct can be called cruelty, it must touch a certain pitch of severity. It is for the Court to weigh the gravity. It has to be seen whether the conduct was such that no reasonable person would tolerate it. It has to be considered whether the complainant should be called upon to endure as a part of normal human life. Every matrimonial conduct, which may cause annoyance to the other, may not amount to cruelty.

Mere trivial irritations, quarrels between spouses, which happen in day-to-day married life, may also not amount to cruelty. Cruelty in matrimonial life may be of unfounded variety, which can be subtle or brutal. It may be words, gestures or by mere silence, violent or non-violent.”

Therefore the behavior of your wife towards you and your parents can easily come within the ambit of Cruelty as the ground for filing your Divorce Petition.

Now you need to file a petition for divorce under this Section seeking a decree for divorce in the competent court. For this you need to consult an Advocate who shall draft your petition and the legal expenses involved in the entire process will depend upon the Advocate you engage. You may contact us for further details on this.

As far as the amount of maintenance (Alimony) which you shall be liable to pay to your wife is concerned, it shall be decided by the Court. However as you have mentioned that she is earning as well, this amount may not be too high, and will depend on a few other criteria like the current lifestyle, expenses, etc. of your wife. You have also not mentioned if you have any children as if any, their maintenance will also be borne by you to the entent as decided by the Hon'ble court.