WIDENING the scope of Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, the Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the provision, which deals with cruelty by a husband or his relatives, would also apply to partners in live-in relationships if an intention to marry is proven. The top court said “live-in relationships” are today, more or less, a reality -- primarily in urban areas, where an increasingly large section of the population resides -- and the law must adapt itself to serve those who choose this form.

 

A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and N Kotiswar Singh said a man in a live-in relationship can be prosecuted for subjecting a woman to cruelty if the relationship is “in the nature of marriage”. Section 498A refers to a woman’s husband or his relatives subjecting her to cruelty. “Section 498A is held to be applicable to ‘live-in relationships’ that qualify as ‘relationships in the nature of marriage’ with the intent to marry being established as an intrinsic part thereof; “The ‘live-in relationships’ protected by Section 498A, it is stated for ample clarity, are those that are between two consenting adult individuals. The proposition of law as laid down shall be limited to Section 498A IPC only, and this extended interpretation shall not affect any other provision,” the bench said. The top court said the safeguards against arrest and other factors shall be strictly applied and no person in a relationship “in the nature of marriage” having been accused of committing cruelty against a woman, being either the live-in partner “in the nature of marriage” or his relative, shall be arrested without preliminary inquiries.

 

The apex court said that if a woman is in a domestic setup even prior to marriage, the protection given to married woman should be given to them also. “Cruelty, any which way, does not check at the door, whether the house it enters is that of a married woman or not. Once it enters, its propensity to destroy is aggravated. “It is held, therefore, that a woman in a ‘relationship in the nature of marriage’ shall be protected under Section 498A, giving the word ‘husband’ a purposive interpretation, keeping in view the reformative, corrective and socially beneficial intent of the Section,” the bench said. The top court said that not a single person goes into a relationship knowing or anticipating that cruelty may be meted out to them. “When a couple sets out on their journey, it is always, one presumes, with the best of intentions and to bring joyfulness of all forms. With the passage of time, however, some relationships may go down this troublesome path. The law must provide for the same.