Key Points
- The Bombay High Court overturned a 20-year-old conviction for cruelty against a man and his family.
- The court found that actions like taunting, limiting TV access, and making the wife sleep on a carpet did not amount to cruelty under IPC Section 498A.
- The man and his family were acquitted of charges of cruelty and abetment to suicide.
- Allegations also included restricting visits to the temple and forcing the wife to fetch water at night.
- The court noted that water collection at midnight was a common practice in the village.
Looma News
The Bombay High Court’s Aurangabad bench overturned a 20-year-old conviction against a man and his family for allegedly being cruel to his late wife. The court ruled that actions like taunting her over the food she cooked, limiting her access to TV, making her sleep on a carpet, and stopping her from visiting the temple by herself didn’t count as “severe” cruelty under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The ruling followed an appeal from the family, who had been convicted earlier by a lower court under Sections 498A and 306 of the IPC for cruelty and abetment to suicide. The High Court said the allegations were more about family issues, rather than acts of physical or mental cruelty.
In his October 17 ruling, Justice Abhay S Waghwase pointed out several accusations against the family, including making the wife sleep on a carpet, stopping her from watching TV, and limiting her social life. They were also accused of making her do household chores like taking out the garbage and fetching water at night. However, the court noted that collecting water at midnight was a normal practice in the village of Varangaon, where the water supply was typically available around that time, and it was something all families did.
The acquittal of the man, his parents, and his brother came after they appealed against the trial court’s decision, which had found them guilty of cruelty and abetment to suicide. The High Court’s ruling emphasizes the need to separate serious cruelty from ordinary family disputes.
