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Courts Tighten Scrutiny of 498A Cases With Calcutta Quash and Delhi Acquittal

Judges stress that only specific, corroborated allegations of grave conduct can sustain criminal cruelty charges.

The court noted that the complaint in the current case was lodged in 2007, two years after the last instance of alleged cruelty. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
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Overview

  • Calcutta High Court quashed proceedings against a husband and his father-in-law, ruling that an earning wife contributing to household expenses and other routine domestic interactions do not amount to cruelty under Section 498A.
  • Justice Ajay Kumar Gupta found the accusations largely vague and uncorroborated, noting missing medical records for a claimed 2017 assault, no independent support for alleged 2017 and 2020 incidents, and SC/ST allegations not made in public view.
  • The High Court said related charges, including criminal breach of trust, intimidation, dowry demands and Juvenile Justice Act violations, lacked specific evidence and the case appeared manifestly mala fide for the petitioners.
  • In Delhi, Additional Sessions Judge Shivani Bansal on August 29 set aside a 2023 magistrate conviction and acquitted a husband and a relative, calling it a classic misuse of Section 498A.
  • The Delhi order highlighted a two-year gap between the last alleged incident and the 2007 complaint, questioned the credibility of a claimed balcony-threat episode involving a newborn, and found no proof that alleged cruelty was tied to unlawful dowry demands.