Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:
The Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court, comprising Justice Vibha Kankanwadi and Justice Sanjay Deshmukh,
has rejected a criminal case registered against a woman staying as a live-in partner. The bench underlined that the husband’s second wife, friend or lover does not fall in the category of relatives as per Section 498 (A).
Background of the case
It so happened that the complainant filed a case against her husband’s live-in partner at City Chowk police station under Sections 498 (A), 406, 323, 504, 506 and 34 of IPC. The complainant stated that her marriage was solemnised on March 25, 2016. The husband was in the police department and posted in Mumbai. After marriage, the husband went to Mumbai, and she was kept to stay with her in-laws. When the complainant expressed her wish to go to Mumbai, her sister-in-law (husband’s sister) opposed it. In the meantime, the complainant learnt that her husband stays with his lover (as a live-in partner) and the couple has one son. On the orders of her lover, the complainant’s husband started beating and abusing her. He tortured her to bring Rs 10 lakh from her parents to purchase a new house. Hence, the complaint was registered against the husband, the sister-in-law, the live-in partner and the sister-in-law’s daughter. After the investigation, the charge sheet was filed against them.
Approaching High Court
The woman, who was staying as a live-in partner with the complainant’s husband, when she was made an accused in the case, filed an application in the bench through Adv Ravindra Gore and requested to cancel the criminal case filed against her. After the hearing, the court made its observation that the man and woman are staying as live-in partners and there is no evidence that they are married. They are in love and have established physical relations. Similarly, based on the birth certificate of the child she gave birth to, it cannot be established that she is a relative of the complainant’s husband. Therefore, the bench directed that the criminal case against the complainant's husband's alleged girlfriend be quashed. Adv. Gore was assisted by Adv. Aadesh Ban and Adv. Adil Shaikh in the case.