In Brief
A wife sought to resile from a settlement agreement signed before the Supreme Court Mediator for dissolution of marriage by mutual consent. Under the settlement, the husband had agreed to pay Rs. 1 crore 15 lakh as permanent alimony, had already paid Rs. 50 lakh, and withdrawn his matrimonial petition. The wife accepted payment but later refused to honour the settlement. The Court held that matrimonial relations had broken down irrevocably and granted a divorce decree under Article 142 of the Constitution, enforcing the settlement terms. The husband's obligations to pay remaining alimony were preserved.
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