In a unique case, the High Court in Mumbai has ruled that a wife's refusal to have sex with her husband without a condom could not be a legal ground for divorce, local media reported Friday.

Pradeep Bapat filed divorce petition before the court alleging that his wife refused to have sex with him without a condom as she was reluctant to have children because they were not financially stable.

But, a two-judge bench of the High Court rejected his divorce plea and said that his other grounds for legal separation -- a lack of cooking and cleaning skills on his wife's part -- could not be grounds for divorce.

The couple married in February 2007 and by June his wife had left their home.

"She wanted to give the child a better life. It is a mutual decision and a husband can not insist," the Times of India quoted Justice PB Majmudar as saying.

Bapat's lawyer told the court that his client wanted an educated, working woman as his wife, who would also do the housework.

"A woman is not a slave. You have put (common marital troubles) in the plea. If we construe these as cruelty, then no marriage will be safe," the court remarked.

In the ruling, the court also said couples should get to know each other before marrying, especially in the case of arranged marriages. "It is the duty of parents to consider various aspects before the actual marriage takes place," it said.