Amid Atul Subhash's suicide row, SC asks courts to exercise caution on dowry cases
New Delhi/IBNS: The Supreme Court has asked courts to exercise caution while deciding dowry harassment charges to prevent unnecessary heckling of innocent people and restrict the misuse of Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which penalises cruelty by husbands and their relatives against married women.
The observation makes a significant impact, particularly at this time, amid an ongoing nationwide debate on the misuse of dowry prohibition laws in the aftermath of a 34-year-old techie's suicide in Bengaluru.
In a suicide video, the victim Atul Subhash, who is originally from Uttar Pradesh, alleged that he and his family were slapped with charges of murder, dowry harassment, and unnatural sex by his wife Nikita Singhania to extort money. However, Nikita later withdrew the case.
Atul was found hanging at his home on Monday with a 24-page suicide note in which he also criticised the judicial system.
A Heartbreaking Loss: Atul Subhash, a young man, tragically took his own life.
— Akassh Ashok Gupta (@peepoye_) December 10, 2024
- His wife, driven by greed, was already receiving ₹40,000 every month as maintenance, despite working at Accenture and earning her own money.
- Yet, she demanded ₹2-4 lakhs more.
- In a moment of… pic.twitter.com/nSbQ6JNGWN
In the suicide note, Atul alleged his wife was getting Rs. 40,000 per month for maintenance despite having a job at Accenture and even asked for Rs. 2-4 lakh more.
The Supreme Court's remarks came as it quashed a Telangana High Court order that had refused to strike down a dowry harassment case against a man, his parents, and other family members.
A bench comprising Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice N Kotiswar Singh observed that sometimes the provision, originally intended to protect women from domestic violence and harassment, is seen to be exploited by some women to force their husbands to meet their unreasonable demands.
Regarding the particular case, the apex court said an examination of the FIR shows that the wife's allegations were "vague and omnibus".
It also said that some of the accused don't even bear any connection to the matter and "have been dragged into the web of crime without any rhyme or reason".
After considering the arguments, the Supreme Court noted that the cases filed by the wife were to settle personal scores and grudges and that she was misusing the provisions meant originally 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," the court observed while quashing the case.
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