2003 Supreme(Del) 484

High Court Of Delhi
SAVITRI DEVI - Appellant
Versus
RAMESH CHAND - Respondent
CRIMINAL APPEAL 462 of 2002
Decided On : 05/19/2003

Headnote:Indian Penal Code, 1860 - Section 406, 498A — Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty — Petition under section 498A, IPC — Cruelty and harassment — Non-acceptance of customary gifts brought by the petitioner for relatives of husband — No physical or mental torture — No unlawful demand for any property or valuable security nor any intimidation — No likelihood of causing danger to life or limb — Non-acceptance of gifts neither cruelty nor harassment attracting section 498A — Petition misconceived, dismissed.

       Held:

       Neither every cruelty nor every harassment has element of criminal culpability for the purposes of Section 498-A. There is no problem where there is physical violence and infliction of injury which is likely to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health. In such cases, facts will speak for themselves.

       To ascertain marital cruelty though ordinarily whole series of acts or conduct should be weighed to infer cruelty yet an isolated act can lead to inference of cruelly if its gravity or seriousness is of such a magnitude that it is likely to cause grave injury to physical or mental health of victim spouse. Composite picture should be drawn as to the acts, incidents or conduct for ascertaining whether these amount to cruelty-physical or mental. Unless such kinds of physical or mental ill-treatments when taken together lead to the inference of persistent cruelty, charge of cruelty cannot stick.

       Though intention to cause injury is not an essential ingredient regard may be had as to the actual intention or knowledge on the part of the offending spouse as to actual or probable effect whether it would cause injury to physical or mental health. Again acts or conduct should be judged from the angle of a person possessing ordinary intellectual capabilities.

       In constituting cruelty contemplated by Section 498A IPC the acts or conduct should be either such that may cause danger to life, limb or health or cause grave in jury or of such a degree that may drive a woman to commit suicide. Not only that such acts or conduct should be "willful" i.e. intentional. So to invoke provisions of Section 498A IPC the tests are of stringent nature and intention is the most essential factor. The only test is that acts or conduct of guilty party should have the sting or of fact of causing grave injury to the woman or are likely to cause danger of life, limb or physical or mental health. Further conduct that is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide is of much graver nature than that causing grave injury or endangering life, limb or physical or mental health. It involves series of systematic, persistent and willful acts perpetrated with a view to make the life of the woman so burdensome or insupportable that she may be driven to commit suicide because of having been fed up with marital life.

       Similarly offence of harassment is peculiar to Indian conditions and society where evil of dowry and its perpetuation through customary gifts or demands is widely prevalent and is eating the very vitals of matrimony and tearing familial social fabric apart. To curb this evil, the acts of not only the husband but the entire household have been brought within the net of "harassment of a woman" if done to coerce her or her relatives to fulfill the unlawful demands for property or valuable security.

       The word harassment in ordinary sense means to torment a person subjecting him or her through constant interference or intimidation. If such termination is done with a view to coerce any person and in this case, the wife to do any unlawful act and in this case to meet the unlawful demand of property or valuable security, it amounts to "harassment" as contemplated by Section 498-A. Word Coercion means persuading or compelling a person to do something by using force or threats. Thus to constitute "harassment following ingredients are essential:-

       (i) Woman should be tormented i.e. tortured either physically or mentally through constant interference or intimidation;

       (ii) Such act should be with a view to pursued or compel her to do something which she is legally or otherwise not expected to do by using force or threats;

       (iii) Intention to subject the woman should be to compel or force her or her relatives to fulfill unlawful demands for any property or valuable security.

       Only allegation against the respondents is that they did not like the clothes brought by the petitioner as customary gifts for relatives of the husband. One of the sisters-in-law remarked that had the marriage taken place with her sister, more dowry would have been received. These allegations when tested on the anvil of aforesaid tests, do not make out a case of either cruelty or harassment as contemplated by Section 498A IPC, Non-acceptance of gifts might have hurt her feelings and other remarks might have been unkindly and incisive but by no stretch of imagination, such a conduct involves any of the ingredients of either offence under section 498A IPC or 406 IPC. Neither such an act or conduct has the effect of driving the woman to commit suicide nor of causing grave injury nor is likely to cause danger to life or limb nor did it amount to tormenting her either physically or mentally to compel or force her or her relatives to fulfill the demands of any property or valuable security. For the foregoing reasons, the petition is highly misconceived and is being used as a tool to hold the entire household to ransom and jeopardy. Petition is dismissed.