JODHPUR, April 24 -- The Rajasthan high court ruled on Monday that a husband securing an ex parte divorce decree from a foreign court without notifying his wife constitutes cruelty under the Hindu Marriage Act. A division bench of justice Arun Monga and justice Sunil Beniwal held that such conduct undermines the fundamental principles of fairness in matrimonial disputes. The court noted that no spouse can secretly dissolve a marriage abroad while leaving the other partner unaware of the proceedings. The bench observed that the husband had "unilaterally obtained an ex parte divorce decree from the Superior Court of a foreign jurisdiction without informing the wife". It ruled that such actions cannot be deemed legally acceptable under Indian matrimonial law. The case stemmed from an appeal by a woman against an order from family court No. 3 in Bikaner. That court had dismissed her petition seeking divorce under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. Court records show the couple married in Bikaner on May 27, 2010, according to Hindu rites. They had a son. The woman alleged that her husband moved to the United States soon after the wedding and that she joined him later. She claimed harassment there forced her return to India with the child. She further contended that, while in India, her husband secretly initiated proceedings abroad and obtained the divorce decree without notice or opportunity for her to contest it. The bench said: "...The husband's act of one-sidedly dissolving the marriage abroad is a clear and unequivocal manifestation of his intention to sever the marital bond, apart from leaving the wife shocked, which is nothing but an act of cruelty inflicted on her."...