ExpressBuzz; Sudha Nambudiri ; Wednesday, May 04, 2011,
KOCHI: The solemn marital vow _ 'Till death do us part' is fast becoming 'Till divorce do us part' in the state. Giving cause for concern to the social fabric of society, sociologists, women and civil society groups, more and more couple are filing for divorce on several grounds, including dowry harassment, alcoholism and annulment.
In all, family courts have handled 10,926 cases across the Kerala. Ernakulam leads the table with 1,100 cases in 2010 alone followed by Thrissur and Alappuzha with 1,059 and 1,036 cases respectively. According to information received through RTI, there are 16 family courts in the state. Two more have been added to the list with Thalassery and Vadakkara getting a court each.
The southern and central districts of Kerala top the chart while Kalpetta registered the lowest at 198. Thiruvananthapuram (942), Nedumangad (805), Kollam(780), Kottarakkara(582), Tiruvalla(754), Alappuzha(1036), Ettumanoor(361), Thodupuzha(418), Palakkad(601), Malappuram(457), Kozhikode(812), Kannur and Kasargod(305) too find their place on the divorce chart.
There were 416 divorces in Ernakulam in 1999 while in Thrissur it was 335, said Thomstine K Augustine, advocate, Kerala High Court. When an issue crops up among a couple, the family, instead of giving it a thought, rushes off to file for divorce. With the rise in the number of family courts, it has become easy for people to file cases, says Thomstine.
One of the reasons for the rise in the number of divorces is the dowry system practised with social sanction in society. The girl goes to her inlaws decked in gold and loaded with cash. So she expects to be treated with a lot of care. Earlier, the marriage arrangement was not balanced. The man got the dowry but the girls were not expecting to be treated equally. Now they expect an equal status, says J Devika, associate professor, Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram.
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