Husband’s girlfriend can’t be tried for cruelty: SC
The Supreme Court has ruled that a girlfriend or a woman involved in a romantic or sexual relationship with a married man cannot be prosecuted for cruelty under Section 498A of the IPC, as she does not qualify as a “relative of the husband” within its meaning.
A Bench led by Justice BR Gavai cited the 2009 verdict in U. Suvetha v. State by Inspector of Police, emphasizing that the term “relative” implies a status conferred by blood, marriage, or adoption. “A girlfriend or concubine cannot be construed as a relative,” the court observed.
The judgment came in response to a petition filed by a woman implicated in a 2019 case of cruelty under Section 498A by the wife of her former boyfriend. The court quashed the charges against her, stating that no evidence suggested she was involved in harassment or dowry demands.
“Taking the allegations at their face value in the FIR or even in the entire material placed in the charge-sheet, it will show that there is no averment or material to show that the appellant (ex-girlfriend of the man) was in any way concerned with causing harassment to (the man’s wife) on account of non-fulfilment of demand of dowry,” the top court said in its December 4 verdict.
“In that view of the matter, we are of the considered view that the continuation of the criminal proceedings against the appellant herein would be nothing else but an abuse of process of law. We find that the present appeal deserves to be allowed,” the Bench said.
The ex-girlfriend of the man had moved the top court against the judgment and order passed by a Single Judge of the Karnataka High Court dismissing her petition seeking quashing of the case registered at PS Gundlupete against her for offence punishable under Sections 498A and certain other provisions of Indian Penal Code, and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
The allegations stemmed from claims that the accused was in a relationship with the complainant’s husband before and after his marriage. The complainant alleged mental and physical harassment and claimed the accused had used abusive language during phone calls.
After the conclusion of the investigation, a charge-sheet was also filed against five accused persons on August 1, 2019. However, the top court quashed all charges against the alleged girlfriend of the man.
