Divorce rate growing in Kathmandu

Kathmandu, Nov 7-Cases of divorce are growing in Kathmandu thanks to growing domestic violence and social-economic problems.

A record made available by the Kathmandu District Court shows that a total of 597 cases were registered in Kathmandu district in the year 2061/62 B.S. out of which 198 cases are yet to be decided. The number of divorce cases filed at the district court the previous year was 560 of which 351 cases were decided.

128 divorce cases were registered in first three months of the current fiscal year, court officials informed.

“Domestic violence is the major cause behind growing divorce rate,” points out Basanti Shrestha, an advocate at the Legal Aid and Consultancy Center (LACC).

She added, “Most divorce cases are related to love marriages but there are also few cases in which husband and wife seek divorce after spending as many as than 20 years together”.

“As far as filing divorce case is concerned, females are ahead of males because women can directly file petition at the district court while males are required to file cases in the municipal office at first,” she explained.

Analyzing the cause of divorce from sociological point of view, Chandra Kanta Gyawali, a sociologist and a lawyer, said, “It primarily depends on how the couples were socialized in the society before they got married. It is the environment in which they grew up that decides their mindset. And, if their way of thinking differs, it ends up in a split.”

“Divorce does not always cause harm to social order. Sometimes it becomes the only way out for married couples who find it difficult to give continuity to their relationship and seek a way-out,” he added.