Domestic Violence and Dowry Harassment Case
Appeal
Appeal against the order refusing quash
2. Being aggrieved by the order dated 16.02.2022 passed by the High Court for the State of Telangana in Criminal Petition No.1479 of 2022 refusing to quash the criminal proceedings in FIR No.82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022 registered with Neredmet Police Station, Rachakonda against the appellant Nos.1 to 6 herein (collectively referred as “appellants”) under Sections 498A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (“IPC”, for short) and Section 3 and 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 (“Dowry Act”, for short), the appellants have preferred this appeal.
Key Facts and Allegations
Allegations is harassment and dowry demands against appellant No.1 resulting in an FIR under sections 498A IPC and Dowry Act Sections 3 and 4 and appellants 2 to 6 instigated these demands
3. Briefly stated the facts of this case are that the marriage of appellant No.1 husband and respondent No.2 wife was solemnised on 08.03.2015 as per Hindu rites and rituals at Chennakesava Swamy Temple, Marakapuram, Andhra Pradesh. Appellant Nos.2 and 3 are the father-in-law and mother-in-law respectively of respondent No.2 and appellant Nos.4 to 6 are sisters-in-law of respondent No.2. Respondent No.2 lodged a complaint against the appellant Nos.1 to 6 and accused No.7 who is her brother-in-law which was registered as FIR No.82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022 for the offences punishable under Section 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act registered with Neredmet Police Station, Rachakonda. As per the said FIR, it was alleged that at the time of her marriage, the father of respondent No.2 gave net cash of Rs.10 lakhs, 10 tolas of gold, and other household articles as dowry and also spent Rs. 5 lakhs towards marriage expenses. After the marriage, the couple started residing at Jollarpeta, Tamil Nadu where appellant No.1 was working in Southern Railways. Out of their wedlock, respondent No.2 and appellant No.1 have 2 minor children. The first child was born in the year 2016 and the second child was born in the year 2017. After marriage, appellant No.1 started harassing her both physically and mentally for want of additional dowry. Appellant No.1 also used to abuse respondent No.1 in filthy language and used to suspect her character. He also used to come home inebriated and harassed her by having an illegal affair with one Mounika. In so far as appellant Nos.2 to 6 are concerned, respondent No.2 alleged that they used to instigate appellant No.1 for demanding more dowry her.
Appellant and accused no. 7 prefer quash
4. Being aggrieved by the said criminal proceedings pending against them, the appellants and accused No.7 approached the High Court by filing Criminal Petition No.1479 of 2022 under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1908 [1973] (“CrPC”) seeking quashing of the FIR No.82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022 registered with Neredmet Police Station, Rachakonda.
Hon’ble High Court refused to quash and hence preferred this appeal
5. By the impugned order dated 16.02.2024, the High Court refused to quash the criminal proceedings pending against the appellants and accused No.7 in FIR No.82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022 and disposed of the Criminal Petition No.1479 of 2022 directing the Investigation Officer to follow the mandatory procedure contemplated under Section 41-A of CrPC and also the guidelines issued by this Court in Arnesh Kumar vs. State of Bihar (2014) 8 SCC 273. The High Court further granted protection by directing the Investigation Officer not to arrest to appellants until the chargesheet is filed. The High Court noted that there are matrimonial disputes between appellant No.1 and respondent No.2 and that in matrimonial disputes, custodial interrogation of the accused is not required. Being aggrieved by the High Court’s refusal to quash the criminal proceedings arising out of FIR No.82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022, the appellants herein have preferred the instant appeal.
Final report was filed against the appellant and other 5 accused under section 498A IPC and Sections 3 & 4 Dowry Act but dropped against accused no.7
6. Subsequent to the impugned order dated 16.02.2022, the police have filed a chargesheet dated 03.06.2022 before the Court of 1st Metropolitan Magistrate, Malkajgiri, Cyberabad vide C.C. No.1544 of 2022 against the appellant Nos.1 to 6 under Section 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act. However, the charges were dropped against accused No.7 (respondent No.2’s brother-in-law). The criminal case against the appellants herein is pending trial in the Court of 1st Additional Junior Civil Judge-cumAdditional Metropolitan Magistrate, Malkajgiri.
Analysis of Hon’ble Supreme Court
Apex court analysing State of Haryana vs. Bhajan Lal
11. In State of Haryana vs. Bhajan Lal, 1992 Supp (1) SCC 335 (“Bhajan Lal”), this Court formulated the parameters under which the powers under Section 482 of the CrPC could be exercised. While it is not necessary to revisit all the parameters, a few that are relevant to the present case may be set out as under:
“102. In the backdrop of the interpretation of the various relevant provisions of the Code under Chapter XIV and of the principles of law enunciated by this Court in a series of decisions relating to the exercise of the extraordinary power under Article 226 or the inherent powers under Section 482 of the Code which we have extracted and reproduced above, we give the following categories of cases by way of illustration wherein such power could be exercised either to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice, though it may not be possible to lay down any precise, clearly defined and sufficiently channelised and inflexible guidelines or rigid formulae and to give an exhaustive list of myriad kinds of cases wherein such power should be exercised.
(1) Where the allegations made in the first information report or the complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety do not prima facie constitute any offence or make out a case against the accused.
x x x
(7) Where a criminal proceeding is manifestly attended with mala fide and/or where the proceeding is maliciously instituted with an ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused and with a view to spite him due to private and personal grudge.”
12. In the instant case, the allegations in the FIR are under Section 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act.
Hon’ble Supreme Court after analysing sections 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act has held as follows:
Section 498 A IPC explained in detail
15. An offence is punishable under Section 498A of the IPC when a husband or his relative subjects a woman to cruelty, which may result in imprisonment for a term extending up to three years and a fine. The Explanation under Section 498A of the IPC defines “cruelty” for the purpose of Section 498A of the IPC to mean any of the acts mentioned in clauses (a) or (b). The first limb of clause (a) of the Explanation of Section 498A of the IPC, states that “cruelty” means any wilful conduct that is of such a nature as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide. The second limb of clause (a) of the Explanation of Section 498A of the IPC, states that cruelty means any wilful conduct that is of such a nature as to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (whether mental or physical) of the woman. Further, clause (b) of the Explanation of Section 498A of the IPC states that cruelty would also include harassment of the woman where such harassment is to coerce her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or any person related to her to meet such demand.
Section 3 & 4 of Dowry Act explained in detail
16. Further, Section 3 of the Dowry Act deals with penalty for giving or taking dowry. It states that any person who engages in giving, taking, or abetting the exchange of dowry, shall face a punishment of imprisonment for a minimum of five years and a fine of not less than fifteen thousand rupees or the value of the dowry, whichever is greater. Section 4 of the Dowry Act talks of penalty for demanding dowry. It states that any person demanding dowry directly or indirectly, from the parents or other relatives or guardians of a bride or bridegroom shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months, but which may extend to two years and with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees.
Issue for consideration: Whether High Court is correct is refuse to quash FIR
17. The issue for consideration is whether, given the facts and circumstances of the case and after examining the FIR, the High Court was correct in refusing to quash the ongoing criminal proceedings against the appellants arising out of FIR No. 82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022 under Section 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act.
FIR shows that allegations are vague and omnibus
18. A bare perusal of the FIR shows that the allegations made by respondent No.2 are vague and omnibus. Other than claiming that appellant No.1 harassed her and that appellant Nos.2 to 6 instigated him to do so, respondent No.2 has not provided any specific details or described any particular instance of harassment. She has also not mentioned the time, date, place, or manner in which the alleged harassment occurred. Therefore, the FIR lacks concrete and precise allegations.
Respondent no.2 left matrimonial home leaving her minor children after appellant questioned her for talking to a person named Govindan
19. Further, the record reveals that respondent No.2 on 03.10.2021 left the matrimonial house leading appellant No.1 to file a police complaint on 05.10.2021. When the police officials traced her, respondent No.2 addressed a letter dated 11.11.2021 to the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Thirupathur Sub Division requesting to close the complaint made by appellant No.1. In the said letter, respondent No.2 admitted that she left her matrimonial house after quarrelling with appellant No.1 as she was talking to a person by name Govindan over the phone for the past ten days continuously. She further admitted that appellant No.1 was taking good care of her. She also stated that she will not engage in such actions in future. Despite that, in 2021 itself, respondent No.2 once again left the matrimonial house leaving appellant No.1 and also her minor children.
Appellant no.1 issued a legal notice seeking divorce and hence this FIR against him
20. Losing hope in the marriage, appellant No.1 issued a legal notice to respondent No.1 seeking divorce by mutual consent on 13.12.2021. Instead of responding to the said legal notice issued by appellant No.1, respondent No.2 lodged the present FIR 82 of 2022 on 01.02.2022 registered with Neredmet Police Station, Rachakonda under Section 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act.
Mere reference of family members in matrimonial dispute without specific allegations should not be ended in criminal case and nipped in the bud
25. A mere reference to the names of family members in a criminal case arising out of a matrimonial dispute, without specific allegations indicating their active involvement should be nipped in the bud. It is a well-recognised fact, borne out of judicial experience, that there is often a tendency to implicate all the members of the husband’s family when domestic disputes arise out of a matrimonial discord. Such generalised and sweeping accusations unsupported by concrete evidence or particularised allegations cannot form the basis for criminal prosecution. Courts must exercise caution in such cases to prevent misuse of legal provisions and the legal process and avoid unnecessary harassment of innocent family members. In the present case, appellant Nos.2 to 6, who are the members of the family of appellant No.1 have been living in different cities and have not resided in the matrimonial house of appellant No.1 and respondent No.2 herein. Hence, they cannot be dragged into criminal prosecution and the same would be an abuse of the process of the law in the absence of specific allegations made against each of them.
Allegations in the FIR are unbelievable
26. In fact, in the instant case, the first appellant and his wife i.e. the second respondent herein resided at Jollarpeta, Tamil Nadu where he was working in Southern Railways. They were married in the year 2015 and soon thereafter in the years 2016 and 2017, the second respondent gave birth to two children. Therefore, it cannot be believed that there was any harassment for dowry during the said period or that there was any matrimonial discord. Further, the second respondent in response to the missing complaint filed by the first appellant herein on 05.10.2021 addressed a letter dated 11.11.2021 to the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Thirupathur Sub Division requesting for closure of the said complaint as she had stated that she had left the matrimonial home on her own accord owing to a quarrel with the appellant No.1 because of one Govindan with whom the second respondent was in contact over telephone for a period of ten days. She had also admitted that she would not repeat such acts in future. In the above conspectus of facts, we find that the allegations of the second respondent against the appellants herein are too far-fetched and are not believable.
27. We find that the High Court noted that there were also allegations against respondent No.2 and matrimonial disputes are pending between the parties. Therefore, the High Court came to the conclusion that custodial interrogation of the appellants was not necessary and protected the personal liberty of the appellants directing the Investigation Officer not to arrest the appellants till the completion of the investigation and filing of the charge-sheet. Albeit the said findings and observations, the High Court ultimately refused to quash the criminal proceedings against the appellants.
Apex court uncovered the going tendency of misusing provisions like section 498A IPC for unleashing personal vendetta against husband and his family
28. The inclusion of Section 498A of the IPC by way of an amendment was intended to curb cruelty inflicted on a woman by her husband and his family, ensuring swift intervention by the State. However, in recent years, as there have been a notable rise in matrimonial disputes across the country, accompanied by growing discord and tension within the institution of marriage, consequently, there has been a growing tendency to misuse provisions like Section 498A of the IPC as a tool for unleashing personal vendetta against the husband and his family by a wife. Making vague and generalised allegations during matrimonial conflicts, if not scrutinized, will lead to the misuse of legal processes and an encouragement for use of arm twisting tactics by a wife and/or her family. Sometimes, recourse is taken to invoke Section 498A of the IPC against the husband and his family in order to seek compliance with the unreasonable demands of a wife. Consequently, this Court has, time and again, cautioned against prosecuting the husband and his family in the absence of a clear prima facie case against them.
29. We are not, for a moment, stating that any woman who has suffered cruelty in terms of what has been contemplated under Section 498A of the IPC should remain silent and forbear herself from making a complaint or initiating any criminal proceeding. That is not the intention of our aforesaid observations but we should not encourage a case like as in the present one, where as a counterblast to the petition for dissolution of marriage sought by the first appellant-husband of the second respondent herein, a complaint under Section 498A of the IPC is lodged by the latter. In fact, the insertion of the said provision is meant mainly for the protection of a woman who is subjected to cruelty in the matrimonial home primarily due to an unlawful demand for any property or valuable security in the form of dowry. However, sometimes it is misused as in the present case.
Previous judgment analysis on this concept
30. In the above context, this Court in G.V. Rao vs. L.H.V. Prasad, (2000) 3 SCC 693 observed as follows:
“12. There has been an outburst of matrimonial disputes in recent times. Marriage is a sacred ceremony, the main purpose of which is to enable the young couple to settle down in life and live peacefully. But little matrimonial skirmishes suddenly erupt which often assume serious proportions resulting in commission of heinous crimes in which elders of the family are also involved with the result that those who could have counselled and brought about rapprochement are rendered helpless on their being arrayed as accused in the criminal case. There are many other reasons which need not be mentioned here for not encouraging matrimonial litigation so that the parties may ponder over their defaults and terminate their disputes amicably by mutual agreement instead of fighting it out in a court of law where it takes years and years to conclude and in that process the parties lose their “young” days in chasing their “cases” in different courts.”
31. Further, this Court in Preeti Gupta vs. State of Jharkhand (2010) 7 SCC 667 held that the courts have to be extremely careful and cautious in dealing with these complaints and must take pragmatic realties into consideration while dealing with matrimonial cases. The allegations of harassment by the husband’s close relatives who had been living in different cities and never visited or rarely visited the place where the complainant resided would have an entirely different complexion. The allegations of the complainant are required to be scrutinized with great care and circumspection.
Appeal allowed and quashed pending proceedings against appellant
33. We, accordingly allow the appeal and set aside the impugned order of the High Court dated 16.02.2022 in Criminal Petition No.1479 of 2022 filed under Section 482 CrPC. The Criminal Petition No.1479 of 2022 under Section 482 of CrPC shall accordingly stand allowed. FIR No.82 of 2022 dated 01.02.2022 registered with Neredmet Police Station, Rachakonda under Section 498A of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Act against appellant Nos.1 to 6, charge-sheet dated 03.06.2022 filed in the Court of 1st Metropolitan Magistrate, Malkajgiri, Cyberabad and the trial pending in the Court of 1st Additional Junior Civil Judge-cum-Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Malkajgiri against the appellants herein shall accordingly stand quashed.
Party
Dara Lakshmi Narayana & Others … Appellants versus State of Telangana & Another … Respondents – Criminal Appeal No. of 2024 (Arising out of Special Leave Petition (Criminal) No.16239 of 2024) – 2024 INSC 953
