u/Maximum_Aardvark_462

I’m looking for some perspective/advice/Support from people who have gone through something similar, especially regarding how these cases generally progress in India.

I got married in December 2024. My wife and I lived together in A City for around four months after marriage. My parents were living separately in B City, so we were not living with my in-laws or parents.

From my side, I genuinely believed everything was going well. I have always tried to provide a good life for her. I come from a modest family and am the first educated person in my family. I work full-time and am also pursuing my master's degree. We never expected or demanded dowry from her or her family.

However, during those four months, there was increasing interference from both sides' families in our married life. Eventually, in April 2025, she left our home and went back to her family. There was no clear reason given to me for why she was leaving, and initially I believed she would eventually return.

This is what happened afterward and her pattern:

1. April 2025: She left our home.
2. April–December 2025: Relatives and people known to both families tried several times to convince her and her family to resolve the matter and send her back. Nothing worked.
3. December 2025: After seeing the situation continuing, I sent her a written letter asking her to return and resume our married life.
4. December 2025: Instead of agreeing to return, I received a mutual divorce proposal asking me to sign an agreement involving approximately ₹30 lakh compensation. The amount and basis for it were not clearly explained to me.
5. January 2026: I hired an advocate and formally responded. I said that if she had any of her belongings with me, she could take them back, and I was also willing to return my belongings that were with her. I was willing to discuss genuine, properly supported expenses, but not an unexplained lump-sum settlement.
6. February 2026: A dowry-related complaint was made against me and my family at a local police station, followed by allegations under Section 498A. It was an application/complaint and the police conducted an enquiry. Ultimately, the matter did not proceed there, and we were advised to resolve the marital dispute mutually.
7. March 2026: Another complaint was made at another police station. Again, an enquiry took place and the matter did not proceed.
8. April 2026: Her side continued to insist on the ₹30 lakh settlement. We responded through advocates again.
9. July 2026: My advocate sent her a legal notice asking her to return and resume the marriage, giving her 15 days to respond. There was no response.
10. August 2026: A Domestic Violence case has now been filed against me and my family which includes my 20y old sister. I have my next hearing coming up. Application in DSP office of Mumbai Maharashtra for 498 FIR against me. Enquiry in process.

What I am struggling to understand is what is actually happening here and how I Save my family from this.

I am not looking for sympathy or revenge. I genuinely want to understand the situation and find the most sensible way to move forward with my life.

TL;DR: Wife left after around 4 months of marriage in April 2025 and did not return despite repeated attempts at reconciliation. In December 2025, her side proposed mutual divorce with a ₹30 lakh settlement. After that there were two police complaints involving dowry/498A allegations that did not proceed. I sent a legal notice in July 2026 asking her to return; there was no response. In August 2026, she filed a DV case against me and my family. I have an upcoming hearing and in parallel She has put application for 498 FIR on me. If you can support please connect with me.

I’m looking for advice from people who have experienced something similar in India.

I got married in December 2024. My wife and I lived together in Delhi for about four months, while my parents lived separately in Lucknow. Initially, I believed everything was going well, although there was some interference from both families.

In April 2025, she left our home without giving me a clear reason. Between April and December, relatives and community members tried several times to resolve the matter and convince her to return, but she did not.

In December, I sent her a written request to return. Instead, her side sent a mutual divorce proposal asking for around ₹30 lakh, without a clear explanation of the amount.

I appointed an advocate in January 2026 and responded that we were willing to return belongings and discuss any genuine, documented expenses, but not an unexplained lump-sum settlement.

After that:

• Feb 2026: Dowry/498A-related complaint against me and my family. Police enquiry was conducted, but it did not proceed.
• Mar 2026: Another police complaint; again, an enquiry was conducted and it did not proceed.
• Apr 2026: Her side continued to insist on the ₹30 lakh settlement.
• July 2026: My advocate sent her a legal notice asking her to return and resume the marriage. No response.
• August 2026: She has now filed a Domestic Violence case against me and my family. I have an upcoming hearing.

I’m not looking for sympathy or revenge. I genuinely want to understand what happens next.

For those who have experienced similar cases:

• What should I expect at the first few DV hearings?
• Does the earlier police enquiry have any relevance?
• How long can such cases take?
• What should I and my family be careful about?
• Is there a realistic way to resolve this without years of litigation?

TL;DR: Wife left after four months of marriage and did not return despite repeated reconciliation attempts. Her side later proposed divorce with a ₹30 lakh settlement. Two police complaints did not proceed after enquiry. I sent a legal notice asking her to return, but received no response. She has now filed a DV case against me and my family. Looking for experiences and practical advice on what happens next.

I’m looking for some perspective and advice from people who have gone through something similar, especially regarding how these cases generally progress in India.

I got married in December 2024. My wife and I lived together in Delhi for around four months after marriage. My parents were living separately in Lucknow, so we were not living with my in-laws or parents.

From my side, I genuinely believed everything was going well. I have always tried to provide a good life for her. I come from a modest family and am the first educated person in my family. I work full-time and am also pursuing my master's degree. We never expected or demanded dowry from her or her family.

However, during those four months, there was increasing interference from both sides' families in our married life. Eventually, in April 2025, she left our home and went back to her family. There was no clear reason given to me for why she was leaving, and initially I believed she would eventually return.

This is what happened afterward and her pattern:

1. April 2025: She left our home.
2. April–December 2025: Relatives and people known to both families tried several times to convince her and her family to resolve the matter and send her back. Nothing worked.
3. December 2025: After seeing the situation continuing, I sent her a written letter asking her to return and resume our married life.
4. December 2025: Instead of agreeing to return, I received a mutual divorce proposal asking me to sign an agreement involving approximately ₹30 lakh compensation. The amount and basis for it were not clearly explained to me.
5. January 2026: I hired an advocate and formally responded. I said that if she had any of her belongings with me, she could take them back, and I was also willing to return my belongings that were with her. I was willing to discuss genuine, properly supported expenses, but not an unexplained lump-sum settlement.
6. February 2026: A dowry-related complaint was made against me and my family at a local police station, followed by allegations under Section 498A. It was an application/complaint and the police conducted an enquiry. Ultimately, the matter did not proceed there, and we were advised to resolve the marital dispute mutually.
7. March 2026: Another complaint was made at another police station. Again, an enquiry took place and the matter did not proceed.
8. April 2026: Her side continued to insist on the ₹30 lakh settlement. We responded through advocates again.
9. July 2026: My advocate sent her a legal notice asking her to return and resume the marriage, giving her 15 days to respond. There was no response.
10. August 2026: A Domestic Violence case has now been filed against me and my family. I have my next hearing coming up.

What I am struggling to understand is what is actually happening here and how this is likely to proceed.

For people who have actually experienced something similar in India:

• How do DV proceedings generally progress from this point?
• What should I realistically expect at the next hearing?
• How long can these proceedings take?
• If the earlier police complaints did not result in a case, does that have any relevance to the DV proceedings?
• What should I and my family be careful about from this point onward?
• Is there realistically a way to bring this to an end without spending years in litigation?

I am not looking for sympathy or revenge. I genuinely want to understand the situation and find the most sensible way to move forward with my life.

TL;DR: Wife left after around 4 months of marriage in April 2025 and did not return despite repeated attempts at reconciliation. In December 2025, her side proposed mutual divorce with a ₹30 lakh settlement. After that there were two police complaints involving dowry/498A allegations that did not proceed. I sent a legal notice in July 2026 asking her to return; there was no response. In August 2026, she filed a DV case against me and my family. I have an upcoming hearing and want to understand what happens next and how this can realistically be resolved.