By Sumit Saxena
Published : Jul 15, 2024, 4:04 PM IST
New Delhi:National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Monday told the Supreme Court that he and his estranged wife Payal Abdullah have been living separately for the last 15 years and the marriage was dead. Omar requested the apex court to invoke Article 142 of the Constitution to dissolve the marriage.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Omar Abdullah, submitted before a bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah that his client's marriage was dead.
Sibal stressed that they have been living separately for the past 15 years and requested the top court to invoke Article 142 of the Constitution, which has been invoked in the past to dissolve marriages. Omar and Payal Abdullah got married on September 1, 1994. They have been living separately since 2009.
The National Conference leader, who is also a former Chief Minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, had moved the apex court challenging a Delhi High Court decision, which rejected his plea seeking divorce from his wife on the grounds of cruelty. After hearing submissions from Sibal, the apex court issued a notice to Payal Abdullah and sought her response within six weeks. In his plea in the apex court, Omar sought divorce on the grounds of cruelty.
In December 2023, the Delhi High Court junked Omar Abdullah's plea seeking divorce saying that there was no merit in his appeal. In 2016, a family court declined to grant a decree of divorce to Abdullah saying that the allegations of cruelty against Payal Abdullah were vague, and also noted that he could not prove claims of "cruelty" or "desertion". The High Court had upheld the family court’s order. Omar and Payal Abdullah share the custody of their two sons.