Section 4 of Matrimonial Causes Act, 1950 of England said that the Court is not bound to pass a decree of divorce even in cases of adultery when there are certain conditions which are satisfied. But, these provisions were removed in the Matrimonial Causes Act, 1973 and a broad ground for dissolution of marriage was laid down. It was said that marriage can be dissolved if it has broken down irretrievably which took account of many reasons including adultery.

Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 clearly mentions that any extra-marital sexual intercourse can be a ground for divorce. Apart from the basic statutory significance, the philosophy which can be derived out of such a provision is the sanctity of a marriage. Hindu marriage is considered to be a sacrament and something sacred should be respected and considered important. When two people get married to each other, they exchange vows and promise to remain faithful to each other. An extra-marital sexual intercourse violates such a virtue of faithfulness.

As mentioned earlier, adultery in case of a wife is to be restricted more than in cases of men. This is because women can bear a child through adultery and claim it to be legitimate whereas men cannot. The drawback is that this practicality is understood only in Christian Laws. Muslim Law despises adultery by considering it to be a crime but it does not take it as a ground for divorce as such. Section 2(viii)(b) of The Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act does not mention adultery specifically as a ground on which a wife can get the marriage dissolved. Nevertheless, such a ground can be implied under the heading of cruelty by saying that the husband associates with women of evil repute and leads an infamous life. This indirect path explains that adultery can be a specific ground as well. Muslim Law also considers adultery a violation of sanctity of a matrimonial life even if muslim marriages are more of a contract than a sacrament.