Bangalore on it's way to become country's divorce capital

Bangalore is fast becoming the divorce capital of India with about 300 in every 1,000 married couples seeking separation from their partners. While 11 out of 1,000 Indian marriages end in divorce compared to the whopping figure of 400 out of every 1,000 in US, the statistics in Bangalore alone is scary. About 40 divorce cases get filed at the family court every day on an average and each case takes a minimum of three to five years before it closes.

To put an end to the rising numbers of divorces, Options Inc, a platform for alternate dispute resolution, created by specially trained and certified mediators, helps couples in conflict to sort out their differences, mutually.

Abhijit and Sneha (names changed) married 12 years ago after a courtship. However, the their marriage lasted only for five years. After a son was born, the  couple developed differences over the child’s upbringing. The differences became so grave that they decided to part ways.

However, thanks to the intervention of Options Inc, Abhijit, Sneha and their son Rohan are today a happy family.

“Abhijit, being an active sportsperson, wanted to groom his son in physical activities. He wanted him to excel in various sports, including swimming, horse riding, tennis, etc.  Sneha, however, was anxious about the child getting physically injured while participating in sports like horse riding. She rather wanted a more balanced life for Rohan and wanted him to focus on education,” said Shiv Kumar, an advocate and a trained mediator, Option Inc.

“The conflict between the couple started with their son— now a 12-year-old — that later escalated to other things. In course of time, their mornings started with accusing each other, and the couple developed bitterness in the relationship. They decided to seek divorce,” said Kumar.

Option helped the couple to identify the actual reason for the differences. Three sessions of pre-litigation mediation helped them realise that they still care for each other. They were ready for a compromise on their decision as to how to bring up their child.
“Now, Rohan is busy attending school and tuitions and also regularly goes for swimming classes,” said Kumar.

“Court proceedings are traumatic. You need to make certain allegations against your partner, whether they are true or not, just to get the case in your favour. And once the allegations are filed, any further resolution or negotiation becomes impossible,” said Shreemoyee Mallick, (name changed), who has filed for a divorce recently, after a pre-litigation mediation. “It is always better to go in for a pre-litigation mediation through a third party dialogue and sort out the differences or appeal for a mutual divorce than throwing mud at each other in the court,” Mallick said.