India has long been a country where traditions and ceremonies are not only honored and revered, but also obeyed. The country’s major issue at the time was the need to put an end to all forms of cruelty directed towards married women, which led to the introduction of Section 498A of the IPC. One fundamental truth is that the offenses covered in this section are rooted in the avarice for dowries and the dowry system as an institution.
The purpose of this section was to shield the women from the crimes committed by their husbands and relatives. The purpose of the section was to protect the women from abuse and torture. However, the current state of affairs makes legislation a bad thing in society.
Section 498A: Indian Penal Code
Any person who subjects a woman to cruelty while they are her spouse or a family member of a woman’s husband faces up to three years in prison and a fine.
As discussed in the institutes for RJS Coaching in Jaipur, within this particular provision, “cruelty” refers to any
- Deliberate behavior that poses a significant risk of injuring the lady severely or endangering her life, limb, or health, whether it be physical or mental; or
- Harassment of the lady when it is intended to force her or anyone connected to her to comply with an illegal demand for any kind of valued security or property, or when it is the result of her or anyone connected to her failing to comply with such a demand.
Section 498A of the IPC: Reasons Behind Immense Misuse
- A get-rich-quick plan used to extract significant sums of money is known as legal extortion.
- The wife is unable to end her previous connection. She gets married to appease her parents, then makes use of the Section 498A law to get a divorce.
- Women who commit adultery utilize Section 498A as a negotiating tactic.
- The wife wants complete control over her husband’s money and social interactions, as well as for him to forsake his parents and siblings.
- Refuse to give the father and his family members visitation rights over the children they have.
- In these cases, the bride (as well as her family) conceals her educational background and mental state, and when she is rightfully asked to free the individual who entered into marriage without all the information, she files a fraudulent 498A complaint.
Section 498A of the IPC: Immense Misuse
A cursory examination of Section 498A demonstrates that an arrangement that was regrettably put in place to protect women from being tortured and harassed by their spouses or relatives has been handled improperly to cause issues for the husband and the rest of his family.
Some of the major landmark cases that are discussed in the institutes of RJS Coaching in Jaipur are as follows:
- The Court in the Saritha v R. Ramachandran case saw the reversal of trends and asked Parliament and the Law Commission to declare a crime that was both bailable and non-cognizable. Nonetheless, it was the court’s duty to denounce misconduct and protect the victim from the consequences of turning into the abuser. This is the husband’s planned remedy. Based on this basis, the woman can receive a divorce from her husband and get married again, or she can get paid money.
- In Savitri Devi v Ramesh Chand & Ors case, the Honorable Court expressly prohibits the misuse of the legal system to the point where it was determined to be unwise for the well-being of the large community because it was heavily influenced by marriage. The court reasoned that in order to stop it from happening, politicians and authorities needed to examine the case and the relevant legal rules.
Section 498A of the IPC: Important Remedies for Subsequent Misuse
- Anticipatory bail functions similarly to analgesics. To be protected from section 498A IPC, the person may apply for anticipatory bail under the virtue of Section 438 CrPC.
- The spouse has the option to go to the High Court to have a fraudulent FIR against him and the member of his family under Section 498A dismissed in order to obtain an FIR under the virtue of Section 482 of the CrPC quashed.
- Under Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act, if a wife retreats from society or leaves her married home to live with her father’s family, the harmed party may petition a district court for restitution of conjugal rights.
- The husband has the right to file a defamation case against the wife if he believes that the wife’s attempt to damage his reputation will cause him more harm than good, or if he feels insulted in public after she filed a fictitious case under Section 498A of the IPC against him.
According to the discussions by various experts in RJS Coaching in Jaipur, if the husband considers that the wife’s attempt to tarnish his reputation would do more harm than good, or if he feels publicly insulted after she filed a false complaint under the virtue of Section 498A of the IPC against him, he has the right to pursue a defamation lawsuit against her.
