ROLPA, July 25: In the past, marriage used to be a sacred bond for lifetime. But these days, this seems nothing more than a myth for the youths of Rolpa. This has been proved by the unexpectedly high number of divorce cases in the district. Early marriage, domestic violence and foreign employment are said to have contributed to the increasing trend of divorce here. Some of the couples file for divorce at the age of 15/16.
The records maintained by the District Court, Rolpa show that the number of divorce cases has increased significantly in the Fiscal Year 2017/18. Out of the total 324 cases filed in the court during the review period, 55 % of them were for divorce. As the case gets extended while claiming for property, most of the divorce cases are filed without claiming property, informed Man Bahadur Bista, registrar at the District Court.
Access to communications contributes to increasing child marria...
The records show that most of the couples filing divorces belong to the age group of 20 to 30 but some of them are less than 20 years. According to advocate Jit Bikram Malla, love marriage, domestic violence and differences in opinion often end up in divorce. Mostly, it's the women who file for divorce.
They chose to go for this step complaining of violence and abuse from their husbands. "As per the provision of the government, women can claim their share in property while filing divorce but women here have been opting for divorce without claiming property," said Registrar Bista.
In the Fiscal Year 2015/16, altogether 116 cases of divorce were filed but the applicants had claimed for share of property only in 15 cases. Similarly, in the Fiscal Year 2016/17, the number rose to 122 while the petitioners claimed for property only in 14 of those cases. Likewise, in the Fiscal Year 2016/17, divorce cases jumped to 129 and only 14 of the applicants had claimed for property share.
The cases of domestic violence are equally high, according to the District Police Office (DPO). "Early marriage and alcoholism are the major reasons behind these cases," said DSP Gyanendra Prasad Phuyal, chief of the DPO.
More than the couples, it's the children who suffer more due to divorce.
