Bombay HC Landmark Ruling: Taunting Wife on Complexion or Cooking Not Cruelty
Mumbai (The Uttam Hindu): In an important decision, the Bombay High Court has overturned a 27-year-old case and acquitted a man of the charge of abetting his wife to suicide. The court in its observation said that taunting a woman for her dark complexion or finding fault with her cooking does not fall under the category of 'cruelty' under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code.
The verdict was pronounced by a single bench of Justice S.M. Modak on an appeal filed by accused Sadashiv Rupanwar, who was convicted by a sessions court in 1998 for abetment to suicide and cruelty following the death of his 22-year-old wife Prema.
Five years after marriage, Prema went missing from her in-laws' house in January 1998, after which her body was found in a well. On the complaint of Prema's family, the police registered a case against her husband Sadashiv and father-in-law for harassment and abetment to death. After the trial, the lower court acquitted the father-in-law, but held her husband Sadashiv guilty and sentenced him to 5 years of imprisonment. Sadashiv, 23 years old at that time, filed an appeal in the High Court against this decision.
Justice Modak said that the allegations levelled by the prosecution were limited to the husband taunting his wife on her dark complexion and threatening to marry another woman. Whereas, the father-in-law was accused of only criticising her cooking. The court said, "These can be called normal quarrels arising from marital life. These are domestic quarrels. They cannot be considered so serious that Prema is forced to commit suicide."
The court clarified that the prosecution completely failed to establish a direct link between the harassment by the accused and the wife's suicide. The Justice said, "There was harassment, but it was not the kind of harassment on the basis of which criminal law can be applied."
The High Court criticised the trial court, saying that the learned judge failed to understand the basic principles and elements of the sections relating to cruelty and provocation. With these observations, the court acquitted Sadashiv Rupanwar of all charges and set aside his conviction.
To read this news in Hindi, Bombay HC Landmark Ruling: Taunting Wife on Complexion or Cooking Not Cruelty