The Court said that there is a growing trend to use the provision as a tool by women for unleashing personal vendetta against the husband and his family.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court raised concerns about the widespread misuse of Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which criminalizes cruelty by husbands and their relatives towards married women [Dara Lakshmi Narayana and Others v. State of Telangana and Another].
A Bench comprising Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice N Kotiswar Singh observed that while the provision was designed to safeguard women from domestic violence and harassment, it is increasingly being misused by some women to compel their husbands and in-laws to meet unreasonable demands.
“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,” the Court said.
The Court observed a rising tendency among women to misuse the provision as a weapon to pursue personal vendettas against their husbands and their families.
“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,” the judgment said.
The Court made these remarks while dismissing cases of cruelty and dowry filed by a wife against her husband and in-laws.
The Court was addressing an appeal filed by the husband and his family members challenging the Telangana High Court’s decision to deny their request to dismiss the case.
The wife had lodged these complaints against her husband and in-laws following his petition seeking dissolution of the marriage.
After examining the arguments, the Supreme Court concluded that the wife had filed the cases to settle personal scores and grievances, thereby misusing provisions intended to protect her.
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,” the Court observed while quashing the case.
This is not the first instance where the Court has expressed concern over the misuse of Section 498A.
Recently, the Court noted that this law is one of the most frequently misused provisions.