Important Point – Application under Domestic Violence Act could be filed when marriage union subsisted.

1. In these petitions preferred under Section 561-A of the J&K Criminal Procedure Code read with Section 104 of the State Constitution seeking to quash the application/complaint titled “Nisha Rani vs Rajeshwar Basil & others” filed by the respondents under Section 12 of the J&K Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2010 qua the petitioners in both the petitions, pending before the Court of 2nd Additional Munsiff Jammu and the order of cognizance thereupon qua the petitioner(s). Since common questions of law and facts arise for consideration in these petitions, they were heard analogously and are being decided by this common order.

2. In 561-A Cr.P.C. No.507/2015, it is stated that the petitioner is married from the last several years and is living with her family at Trikuta Nagar, Jammu, while as the respondent No.1 has filed a false complaint under the provisions of the J&K Protection of Women From Domestic violence Act 2010 (for short the “Act 2010”) against the brother of the petitioner (respondent No.1’s husband), parents of the petitioner (respondent No.1’s parents in law) and the petitioner, while as the fact is that the petitioner is neither living in that house nor sharing any domestic relationship or shared household as envisaged under the Act 2010.

3. In 561-A Cr.P.C. No.555/2015, it is stated that petitioner Nos.1 & 2 are father in law and mother in law of respondent No.1 who has filed a false complaint/application under the of the J&K Protection of Women From Domestic violence Act 2010 (for short the “Act 2010”) against the son (petitioner No.3) of petitioner Nos.1&2, while as the fact is that petitioner Nos.1&2 are not “respondents” as defined in the Act 2010 and are practically not sharing any domestic relationship or shared household as envisaged under the Act 2010, so much so that after respondent No.1 has left the house of the petitioners.

4. The definition of domestic violence under the of the J&K Protection of Women from Domestic violence Act 2010 is as follows:

“......3. Definition of domestic violence-For the purposes of this Act, any act, omission or commission or conduct of the respondent shall constitute domestic violence in case it-

(a) Harms or injuries or endangers the health, safety, life, limb or well being, whether mental or physical, of the aggrieved person lor tends to do so and includes causing physical abuse, sexual abuse, verbal and emotional abuse and economic abuse; or

(b) Harasses, harms, injures or endangers the aggrieved person with a view to coerce her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any dowry or other property or valuable security; or

(c) Has the effect of threatening the aggrieved person or any person related to her by any conduct mentioned in clause (a) or clause (b); or

(d) Otherwise injures or causes harm, whether physical or mental, to the aggrieved person.....”

Therefore, it is the “respondent” whose conduct has to be scanned to determine the “domestic violence” upon “aggrieved person” and the definitions of “aggrieved person”, “domestic relationship” and “respondent” as per the Act are:

(a) Aggrieved person means any woman who is in a domestic relationship with respondent and who alleges to have been subjected to any act of domestic violence by the respondent;

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(f) Domestic relationship means a relationship between to persons who live or have, at any point of time, lived together in a shared household, when they are related by consanguinity, marriage, adoption or are family members living together as a joint family.

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(q) ”respondent” means any adult made person who is in a domestic relationship with the aggrieved person and against whom the aggrieved person has sought any relief under this Act...

5. It is further stated that, in fact, the complaint/application under domestic violence can be filed only by a aggrieved person, who has to be a woman; but in the present case the complaint on