In Gulati v. Gulati , Shikha and Dinesh Gulati were married for 13 years before Shikha filed for divorce, alleging "cruel and inhuman treatment." She testified that Dinesh lacked interest in sexual intercourse and gave her the "silent treatment" when he was angry. On one occasion, he supposedly threw whiskey in her face.
When the Suffolk County Supreme Court dismissed Shikha's claim of "cruel and inhuman treatment" and "constructive abandonment," she appealed to the Appellate Division, Second Department.
To establish "cruel and inhuman treatment," Shikha needed to show Dinesh "endanger[ed] [her] physical and mental well being" and, as a result, she could no longer live with him.
A "dead" marriage and irreconcilable differences aren't enought to satify the governing standard without serious" misconduct. And while she didn't need to prove "criminal conduct of actual physical or mental injury" -- and verbal abuse and harassment were sufficient -- the AD2 was of the opinion that Dinesh's conduct lacked the requisite degree of severity. The lack of sex, failure to communicate, and the single whiskey throwing incident didn't suffice.
In order to establish "constructive abandonment," Shikha needed to prove Dinesh "unjustifiably refused to fulfill the basic obligations" of marriage. Although withholding sex qualified, she needed to show that the lack of intimacy continued for "at least one year." Failing that, her case was dead.
To download a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Gulati v. Gulati