Distress calls citing extramarital affairs rise 2.5-fold in 5 years in Gujarat

AHMEDABAD: A woman in a western area of the city got pregnant with second child. The family celebrated the occasion with pomp, but the woman was surprisingly morose. An accidental eavesdropping by husband revealed that the child was not his, but that of his elder brother. The conversation indicated that while the brother was happy with the affair with his sister-in-law, he was not ready to leave his wife for her. Eventually, the pregnant woman was forced out of her home by her husband.
This was one of the 9,382 calls handled by Abhayam 181 women helpline in 2022 related to extramarital affairs at the rate of one case every hour. In fact, from 2018 to 2022, the calls triggered by infidelity of a spouse have increased from 3,837 to 9,382, indicating a 2.5-fold rise. After domestic violence and harassment, extramarital affairs was the category with the third highest calls to the helpline.
The calls were primarily from Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot.
50% of calls from 4 major cities of state
The calls were primarily from Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot. Of the 9K-plus calls, 4,426 or nearly half the calls were from the four major cities.
Falguni Patel, the helpline coordinator for Ahmedabad, said that for the past three years, they have seen growing impact of dating apps and social media on extramarital relationships. "It's often a close family member, colleague, friend or online acquaintance that plays the third corner of the triangle. Either the wife or the girlfriend approaches the helpline, seeking assistance."
"Earlier, the cases were more concentrated in major cities. But now we are getting calls from almost all the regions. There's also a rise in awareness that it could be a way of resolving the issues," said Jashvant Prajapati, COO, EMRI Gujarat. "One of the reasons for the overall rise in calls to the helpline could be better awareness and wider reach."
Jharna Pathak, secretary of city-based AWAG NGO working for women issues, said that they have seen a rise in domestic violence cases in 2022 compared to 2020 and 2021.
"Extramarital affairs are found to be one of the primary reasons for the phenomenon along with economic issues. The cases could even be higher, as often women don't approach the formal agencies," she said.