Mutual consent divorce in India, explained

A mutual-consent divorce under Section 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act is available when both spouses agree to end the marriage and have settled the terms between them. It is the calmest legal route, and it keeps your time in front of a judge short.

It runs in two steps, which the law calls motions. The first motion records that you both consent. A waiting period follows, which the Supreme Court in Amardeep Singh v. Harveen Kaur allowed a court to waive when the parties have genuinely settled and reconciliation is not possible. The second motion confirms consent, and the family court grants the decree.

Most couples on this path appear once or twice, sometimes on video, over a few months, rather than the years a contested case can take. The court still grants the divorce, so there is a short court step you cannot skip, and unknots will never tell you otherwise.