THE DIVORCE ACT, 1869, CHAPTER I

( ACT NO. IV Of 1869 )

[ 26th February, 1869 ]

2♣An Act to amend the law relating to Divorce and Matrimonial Causes.

Preambl

WHEREAS it is expedient to amend the law relating to the divorce of persons professing the Christian religion, and to confer upon certain Courts jurisdiction in matters matrimonial; It is hereby enacted follows:-

CHAPTER I

PRELIMINARY

Short Title Commencement of Act1. This Act may be called the Divorce Act, and shall come into operation on the first day of April, 1869.

Extent of Act2. This Act extends to the whole of Bangladesh.

Extent of power to grant relief generally and to make decrees of dissolution, or of nullityNothing hereinafter contained shall authorise any Court to grant any relief under this Act except where the petitioner or respondent professes the Christian religion,

or to make decrees of dissolution of marriage except where the parties to the marriage are domiciled in Bangladesh at the time when the petition is presented,

or to make decrees of nullity of marriage except where the marriage if solemnized, before 3[the 26th day of March, 1971, has been solemnized in Pakistan] and if solemnized on or after that date has been solemnized in Bangladesh and the petitioner

is resident in Bangladesh at the time of presenting the petition, or to grant any relief under this Act, other than a decree of dissolution of marriage or of nullity of marriage, except where the petitioner resides in Bangladesh at the time of presenting the petition:

Provided that nothing in this paragraph shall be deemed to authorize any Court to grant any relief under this Act where the petitioner or respondent is a Muslim.

Interpretation-clause3. In this Act, unless there be something repugnant in the subject or context,-

4[* * *]

5[(2) “District Judge” means a Judge of a Principal Civil Court of a district.]

(3) “District Court” means, in the case of any petition under this Act, the Court of the District Judge within the local limits of whose ordinary jurisdiction, or of whose jurisdiction under this Act, the husband and wife reside or last resided together:

(4) “Court” means the High Court Division or the District Court, as the case may be:

(5) “minor children” means, in the case of sons of 6[fathers domiciled in Bangladesh], boys who have not completed the age of sixteen years, and, in the case of daughters of 7[fathers domiciled in Bangladesh], girls who have not completed the age of thirteen years: in other cases it means unmarried children who have not completed the age of eighteen years:

(6) “incestuous adultery” means adultery committed by a husband with a woman with whom, if his wife were dead, he could not lawfully contract marriage by reason of her being within the prohibited degrees of consanguinity (whether natural or legal) or affinity:

(7) “bigamy with adultery” means adultery with same woman with whom the bigamy was committed:

(8) “marriage with another woman” means marriage of any person, being married, to any other person, during the life of the former wife, whether the second marriage shall have taken place within Bangladesh or elsewhere:

(9) “desertion” implies an abandonment against the wish of the person charging it: and

(10) “property” includes, in the case of a wife, any property to which she is entitled for an estate in remainder or reversion, or as a trustee, executrix or administratrix; and the date of the death of the testator or intestate shall be deemed to be the time at which any such wife becomes entitled as executrix or adminstratrix.

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