Madras High Court: Wife Can't Be Expected to Follow Husband's Job Relocations

The Madras High Court ruled that a wife cannot be expected to follow her husband whenever his job requires relocation, citing the Vodafone ad's pug as an analogy. The court made this observation while overturning a family court order in a long-running matrimonial dispute. A Division Bench of Justices GR Swaminathan and MD Sumathi rejected the lower court's reasoning that a husband has a solemn obligation to take his wife wherever he goes. The High Court noted employment circumstances can make establishing a common household impossible, and the same principle applies to both spouses. The court dismissed the husband's adultery allegations for failing to implead the alleged paramour, but granted divorce due to the couple's 16-year separation and irreparable breakdown. The husband was ordered to pay Rs 7 lakh alimony before the decree takes effect.