Asking someone to leave home no cruelty: HC

Nagpur: A division bench of justices Vasanti Naik and Arun Upadhye of Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court last week extended relief to a family by quashing a FIR lodged under Section 498A of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and also simultaneously nullifying the charge sheet after finding no real ingredients of cruelty in the offence registered by MIDC police station in 2015.
The criminal application, filed by Nandkishor Tagde, was allowed by the High Court on the grounds that every act of viciousness in a matrimonial matter would not be ‘cruelty’ within the meaning of terms under Section 498A of IPC.

The court observed that ‘cruelty’ under 498A IPC meant ‘any wilful conduct that would drive the woman to commit suicide or would cause grave injury or danger to her life or limb’. Adding to it, the court also underlined the fact that within the definition of ‘cruelty includes ‘harassment of the woman, where the harassment is with a view to coerce her or a person related to her to meet any unlawful demand of any property or a valuable security’.

The court mentioned the fact that the contents of the FIR created following a complaint filed by Nandkishor’s sister-in-law Neha do not concur with the elements of ‘cruelty’ in the IPC section. Neha, who had married Nandkishor’s younger brother Roshan in May in 2015, had registered an offence of cruelty under Section 498-A, 323 for assault and 34 (common intention) of IPC against the two brothers and their mother at MIDC police.

The cops had filed charge sheet against the brothers after dropping their mother’s name. The Tagde brothers, through their counsel Sameer Sonwane, challenged the FIR and charge sheet before the HC.

The court, while delivering the judgment, struck down the FIR on the grounds that complainant Neha’s claim of being taunted and also asked to leave the house did not amount to cruelty. She had claimed in the FIR that Nandkishor used to pass remark that their house was not a ‘dharmashala’ followed by the insult on her to leave the place.

In addition, she had claimed that Nandkishor used to question her character. The court stated that the allegations of Neha “even if accepted at face value would not show the applicant has committed an act of cruelty”.

Apart from quashing the FIR, HC stated the continuation of the proceeding in the circumstances of the case would result in the abuse of the process of the court before setting aside the charge sheet and the proceeding.