Husband’s illicit relationship by itself is not cruelty: Madras high court
The Madras High Court has ruled that a husband's illicit relationship, by itself, does not constitute 'cruelty' under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code. The court emphasized that the prosecution must provide additional evidence of harassment or dowry demands to meet the legal threshold for the offense.
Why it matters
This legal precedent clarifies the interpretation of domestic cruelty laws in India, impacting how marital infidelity is treated in criminal proceedings.
CHENNAI: A husband’s illicit relationship with another woman by itself would not amount to cruelty to a married woman – a criminal offence under Section 498A of the IPC -- Madras high court has observed.“It is well settled that to attract the offence under Section 498A of IPC, something more than a mere illicit relationship has to be established by the prosecution,” Justice Sunder Mohan said on Friday. This position is reiterated by the Supreme Court judgment in the case of Pinakin Mahipatray Rawal Vs State of Gujarat, he added.The court made the observations while dismissing an appeal moved by brother of a deceased woman, who committed suicide along with her one-and-a-half-year-old child, allegedly due to her husband’s illicit relationship and dowry harassment.On April 23, 2018, a Mahila court acquitted the husband from all the charges on the ground that the prosecution had not established the dowry demand and also…
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