Christian Divorce in Pakistan

Christian divorce is regularized under Christian Divorce Act 1869. Under Christian law either party has no right to pronounce divorce upon other party like Muslim Family Law. Only court has power to declare the marriage null and void or grant judicial separation or dissolve the marriage between the spouses. Therefore, for dissolution of Marriage either party has to file the Civil Petition before the Civil Judge.
Under section 10 of the Divorce Act 1869 husband may file petition for the dissolution of Marriage to the civil judge by filing civil petition praying that his marriage may be dissolve on the ground that his wife has since the solemnization thereof been guilty of adultery.
And if wife want to dissolve her marriage she will also file the civil petition before civil judge praying that her marriage may be dissolve on the ground that his husband since the solemnization thereof exchanged his profession of Christianity for the profession of some other religion, and gone through a form of marriage with other woman.
Or guilty of incestuous adultery
Or bigamy with adultery
Or marriage with another woman with adultery
Or rap, sodomy or bestiality
Or adultery coupled with such cruelty as without adultery would have entitled her to divorce a mensa et toro
Or adultery coupled with desertion without reasonable excuse for two years or upward.
Other way of separation is to declare the marriage null and void. The court can declare the marriage null and void under section 18 of the Divorce Act 1869. The grounds for nullity of marriage are mentioned in section 19 of the Divorce Act which is as under:-
1. That the respondent was impotent at the time of marriage and at the time of institution of suit.
2. That the parties are within the prohibited decrees of Consanguinity (whether natural or legal) or affinity.
3. That either party was a lunatic or idiot at the time of marriage.
4. That former husband or wife of either party was living at the time of marriage, and the marriage with such former husband or wife was then enforce.
There are no other ground in law for the dissolution of Marriage or declaring the marriage null and void except the above.

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