'Tool for unleashing personal vendetta': SC cautions against misuse of Section 498A amid uproar over Bengaluru techie's suicide

The Supreme Court's remarks came amid outrage over the alleged suicide of a 34-year-old techie in Bengaluru who blamed his wife and her family of harassment in a 24-page note. (PTI)

There is a growing tendency to misuse provisions like Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code as a tool for unleashing personal vendetta against the husband and his family, the Supreme Court observed while quashing a case of cruelty against a husband and in-laws of the wife on Tuesday.

A bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and N. Kotiswar Singh also sounded a note of caution against the tendency to implicate all members of the husband's family when domestic disputes arise out of matrimonial discord.

The remarks came amid nationwide outrage over the death of 34-year-old techie Atul Subhash who allegedly died by suicide and left behind a 24-page note accusing his estranged wife and her family of harassment on the pretext of maintenance.

On Tuesday, the top court noted that the inclusion of Section 498A of the IPC by way of an amendment was intended to curb cruelty inflicted on a woman by her husband and his family, ensuring swift intervention by the State.

"However, in recent years, as there has been a notable rise in matrimonial disputes across the country, accompanied by growing discord and tension within the institution of marriage, consequently, there has been a growing tendency to misuse provisions like Section 498A of the IPC as a tool for unleashing personal vendetta against the husband and his family by a wife," the judgment authored by Justice BV Nagarathna said.

"Making vague and generalised allegations during matrimonial conflicts, if not scrutinised, will lead to the misuse of legal processes and an encouragement for use of arm twisting tactics by a wife and/or her family.

"Sometimes, recourse is taken to invoke Section 498A of the IPC against the husband and his family in order to seek compliance with the unreasonable demands of a wife. Consequently, this court has, time and again, cautioned against prosecuting the husband and his family in the absence of a clear prima facie case against them,” the judgment further said.

The court's observations came in its verdict in a criminal appeal filed by the husband and in-laws against the Telangana High Court's decision refusing to quash the domestic cruelty case registered by the wife against them after the husband filed a petition seeking the dissolution of the marriage.

The court deprecated the measure and said that the complainant-wife had misused the provision as a counterblast to the petition for dissolution of marriage sought by the first appellant-husband.

"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...but we should not encourage a case like as in the present one, where as a counterblast to the petition for dissolution of marriage sought by the first appellant-husband of the second respondent herein, a complaint under Section 498A of the IPC is lodged by the latter," the court noted in its judgment.