Keywords: Abuse, Section 498A, Indian Penal Code, Cruelty
Keywords: Abuse, Section 498A, Indian Penal Code, Cruelty
Keywords: Abuse, Section 498A, Indian Penal Code, Cruelty
To begin with, let's look at what the word marriage means in its most basic form. When a couple
decides to marry, they agree to live together for the rest of their lives as one. It is a cultural structure
in which the husband is responsible for caring for and maintaining his spouse. Dowry was a
common practise in Indian culture that was viewed as a great honour at one time. Eventually, it
grew into a horrible structure and then became a sickness for community, with females falling
victim to its ugliest aspect. Women are abused, assaulted, murdered, and divorced because they did
not bring dowry. The Indian Penal Code, 1860 was amended in 1983 to include Section.498A, that
deals with 'Marital Cruelty' to a lady. Nevertheless, it's been noted in past few decades that women
abuse Section 498A of I.P.C. because of their private selfish gain. The number of women trying to
make trivial false accusations against their spouses only with intention of getting rid of them or
merely trying to harm the relatives is a rising trend.
In recent years, this provision has been abused more and more by people who understand that it is
both cognizable and non-bailable, resulting in spontaneous arrests on the girl's allegation and
detention of the guy. This section of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) needs to be amended, as well as
societal changes that will effectively eliminate the torment of misusing this specific law against
males. This study attempts to analyse the notion of cruelty toward women, as well as to
demonstrate that Section 498A of the I.P.C. 1860, is being misused.
Keywords: abuse, section 498A, Indian penal code, cruelty
INTRODUCTION
Indian practises and rituals have always been revered and respected in the country. The principle of
dowry was another one that was widely accepted in India at the time.
When Section 498A had been introduced into the Indian law, it was intended to protect married
women from being treated cruelly for lack of dowry, which most often results in their demise, as
well as to protect women from being harassed by their husbands or his family members.
This provision was created to safeguard females from their husbands and relatives' horrors. The
clause was added to protect women from atrocious behaviour and cruelty. The alarming statistics of
today, on the other hand, reveal a completely different situation. Instead of a 'shield', this section
law is now used by females to torment men for their own advantage and satisfaction. Section 498A
is therefore abused by girls that take advantage of the provisions of this specific passage for their
personal gain.
These days, many claims where Section 498A is asserted are untrue “(and it is repetitively
acknowledged by the Supreme Court and the High Court of India), as they are merely bribery
attempts by the spouse (or her family members) when tormented with a depressed married life,
according to the Supreme Court of India. A Section 498A allegation is often accompanied by a
demand for large sums of financial resources to negotiate a settlement beyond the court, as a result
of this.”
It was stated in the 2003 Malimath Committee report on policy changes in the criminal justice
system that there was a "general complaint" that Section 498A of the IPC was being grossly abused,
and that a change to the provision was recommended.6
According to reports, more than 10,000 cases were proved to be wrong in recent years.7
Because the crimes under Sec 498A are non-bailable and non-compoundable, the man and his
family members will be arrested, and bail will be rejected. The husband and his family members
3 Smt. M.M.Chitnis v. Mr. M.M. Chitnis, 1991 (2) Maharastra L.R. 753.
4 Pawan Kumar v. State of Haryana J.T. 1998 (1) SC- 565.
5 Deeptiman Tiwary, “Section 498A, Dowry: Most FIRs, Least Convictions”, Legal Desire. December 6, 2017. http:
legaldesire.com/section- 498a-dowry-firs-least-convictions/.
6 Vasundhara, “Use And Misuse of Section 498A”, LEGAL SERVICE INDIA (August 13, 2021, 1:15 PM),
http://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-652-use-and-misuse-of-section-498a.html.
7 Times of India dated 22/3/2015 at P.1.
will also be unable to enter into an agreement with the wife to pull back such lawsuits. The
individual who is exposed to such fake accusations suffers a grave infringement of their human
rights.
Feminist organizations are reportedly opposed to any move to make the criminal offense under Sec
498A bailable and compoundable.
8 Gourav Kumar, ”A Study on Misuse of Section 498A of Indian Penal Code, 1860 “, 2019 IJLMH | Volume 2, Issue 3 |
ISSN: 2581-5369
9 Arnesh Kumar V State Of Bihar (2014) 8 Scc 273:
10 Sushil Kumar Sharma v. UOI, 2005 (6) SCC 266.
have indeed been lodged which are not genuine and was filed with an obtuse intent. Acquittal in
such instances does not really erase any embarrassment that was endured either during or preceding
to a court case It's not uncommon for negative coverage to exacerbate an individual's suffering. We
need to figure out how to stop the abuse of this well intended provision. Simple constitutional
validity and intra vires do not give unprincipled individuals blank cheque to wreak personal havoc
and harass innocent people. As a result, it may be essential for legislators to identify solutions to
cope with those who make spurious complaints or accusations. Meanwhile, the courts will have to
cope with the problem in accordance with existing laws.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
• The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
• The Indian Penal Code, 1860.
• Author: K.D.Gaur, Textbook on the Indian penal code, Published by Universal Law Publishing
Co. Edition 4th (2009)
• Section 498A, Dowry: Most FIRs, Least Convictions.‖ Legal Desire. December 6, 2017. http:
legaldesire.com/section- 498a-dowry-firs-least-convictions/.
• Author: RatanlalRanchoddas and DhirajlalKeshavlalThakore, Indian penal code Published by
LexisNexis, 2019 IJLMH | Volume 2, Issue 3 | ISSN: 2581-5369 Edition 34 , (2014)
• Indian kanoon, https://indiankanoon.org/.
• National Crime Records Bureau(NCRB), http://ncrb.gov.in/.