Supreme Court Ruling on Domestic Cruelty and Live-in Relationships
The Supreme Court has expanded the scope of protection against domestic cruelty to include women in live-in relationships under certain conditions.
Background and Application of Section 498A
- Originally, Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) provided protection against cruelty to married women.
- With the introduction of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), this protection now corresponds to Section 85 of the BNS.
- The court recognized that women in live-in relationships should also be protected if there is an "intent to marry."
Legal Context and Precedents
- Section 498A historically applied to legally valid marriages, using the term "husband" specifically.
- The Supreme Court previously extended this definition to include void or voidable marriages, tackling cases where men misrepresented their marital status.
- The current case involved a scenario where a man, already married, sought to avoid prosecution under the claim of a non-valid marriage with the complainant.
Judgment Highlights
- The court employed a "purposive interpretation" of the law to adapt to societal changes, emphasizing that cruelty is not confined to formal marriages.
- The decision deemed the distinction between married and cohabiting women as irrational with respect to Article 14, which guarantees equality.
Arguments Against Expansion
- Petitioners argued that unmarried women are covered under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence (DV) Act, 2005.
- The court countered this by highlighting the difference between civil remedies under the DV Act and the penal provisions of Section 498A.
Criteria for Penal Protection
- The court stressed the "relationship in the nature of marriage" as a criterion, borrowing from the DV Act.
- Key characteristics include shared finances, domestic arrangements, sexual relations, and societal perception as spouses.
- Crucially, there must be an "intent to marry" for such relationships to be eligible under Section 498A.
Implications and Burden of Proof
- Only relationships approximating marriage and with an intent to marry qualify for the protection of Section 498A.
- The woman seeking protection must initially prove this intent.
