No automatic arrest in dowry cases: SC

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 27

In an important verdict, the Supreme Court today put an end to automatic arrests in cruelty and dowry-related cases under Section 498A of IPC that has often been misused to harass innocent family members of husbands named in complaints.

A Bench headed by Justice AK Goel — which ordered setting up of one or more family welfare committees comprising three members in each district — said, “Every complaint under Section 498A received by the police or the Magistrate should be referred to and looked into by such a committee.”

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The committee would interact with the parties personally or by means of telephonic/electronic communication and give a report within a month to the authority which referred the complaint to it, the Bench said, adding that the report would be on “the factual aspects and its opinion” in the matter.

“Till the report of the committee is received, no arrest should normally be effected. The report may be then considered by the Investigating Officer or the Magistrate on its own merit,” said the Bench, which also included Justice UU Lalit.

“Complaints under Section 498A and other connected offences may be investigated only by a designated Investigating Officer of the area. Such designations may be made within one month from today,” the Bench said. Such officers may be given training, to be completed within four months from today, it added.

The Bench also issued certain directions on how to deal with bail matters. “If a bail application is filed with at least one clear day’s notice to the Public Prosecutor/complainant, it should be decided as far as possible on the same day. 

“Recovery of disputed dowry items may not by itself be a ground for denial of bail if maintenance or other rights of wife/minor children can otherwise be protected. Needless to say that in dealing with bail matters, individual roles, prima facie truth of the allegations, requirement of further arrest/custody and interest of justice must be carefully weighed… In respect of persons ordinarily residing out of India, impounding of passports or issuance of Red Corner Notice should not be a routine.”

The Bench said: “It will be open to the District Judge or a designated senior judicial officer nominated by the District Judge to club all connected cases between the parties arising out of matrimonial disputes so that a holistic view is taken by the court to whom all such cases are entrusted; and personal appearance of all family members and particularly outstation members may not be required and the trial court ought to grant exemption from personal appearance or permit appearance by video-conferencing without adversely affecting progress of the trial.

“These directions will not apply to the offences involving tangible physical injuries or death,” it clarified.

The top court said it would like to see for six months how the arrangement worked and sought a report by March 31, 2018, from the National Legal Services Authority about the need for any change in its directions and listed the matter for April 2018.

“It will be open to the parties in the present case to approach the trial or other court concerned for further orders in the light of the above directions,” it said.

The Bench — which was dealing with a matrimonial dispute from Uttar Pradesh — issued the directions after taking into account suggestions made by Additional Solicitor General AS Nadkarni and senior counsel VV Giri, as also the 243rd Report of the Law Commission dated August 30, 2012, 140th Report of the Rajya Sabha Committee on Petitions (September, 2011) and certain earlier decisions of the Supreme Court.

“We are conscious of the object for which the provision (Section 498A of the IPC) was brought into the statute. At the same time, violation of human rights of the innocent cannot be brushed aside. Certain safeguards against uncalled-for arrest or insensitive investigation have been addressed by this court. Still, the problem continues to a  great extent,” it noted.

“To remedy the situation, we are of the view that involvement of civil society in the aid of administration of justice can be one of the steps, apart from the investigating officers and the trial courts concerned  being sensitised. It is also necessary to facilitate closure of proceedings where a genuine settlement has been reached instead of parties being required to move HC only for that purpose,” the Bench said, while issuing a series of directions to check misuse of Section 498A of the IPC.

On the composition of Family Welfare Committees, it said para-legal volunteers/social workers/retired persons/wives of working officers/other citizens who may be found “suitable and willing” could become committee members — who “will not be called as witnesses”.