Complaints under the Domestic Violence Act can be filed by female family members against one another, underscoring the Act’s broad protective intent.

ORDER

The petitioners as complainant filed a Domestic Violence complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Puducherry, which was not entertained, returned as not maintainable and rejected the complaint by order dated 26.12.2023. Against which the present Civil Revision Petition.

2. The contention of the petitioner is that the first petitioner/mother having two sons namely her son Sanjeet and younger son Sampathraj, the second petitioner is the wife of the second son Sampathraj and the respondent is the wife of Sanjeet/elder son. The first petitioner is residing along with her aged husband her sister-in- law, who is aged about 83 years and two sons with her daughter-in- laws and grand children. The elder son, Sanjeet suffered from a Muscular Dystrophy disease and became a wheel chair dependent with 90% disability from 23.12.2015. Thereafter, the attitude of the respondent drastically changed with her husband and other family members including the petitioners and she started to give several complaints against them and they were called by the Police for enquiry and for the reason complaints lodged against him with ulterior motive to extract the maximum monetary gains and property from the petitioners. In the process, the petitioners being harassed, humiliated and subjected to cruelty. Narrating these facts, a complaint filed along with supporting documents under Domestic Violence Act seeking protection order and prohibition from the respondent not to harass the petitioner, her husband and aged sister-in-law under Section 18 and 18(f) of the Act. Further to direct SHO, Grand Bazzar Police Station, Pondicherry to assist in implementation and execution of the order of this Court. This complaint filed on 27.11.2023, kept pending for maintainability and on 26.12.2023 on a wrong notion recording that the application for maintainability filed by mother-in-law against the daughter-in-law not maintainable and recorded the intention of the legislature in bringing was to protect the bride who came to the house as a new member of the family and in case of harassment by her in-laws, domestic violence would apply. The Lower Court further observed that on a reading of the complaint, it found that the petitioner's complaint appears to be focused as a defence to the complaint made by the respondent against the first petitioner's husband and elder son Vijayarao and Sanjeet. Further recorded though the petitioners have been subjected to some sufferings and cruelty at the hands of the respondent, the remedy is to approach the Court by invoking the general penal law and not by invoking Section 12 of the .

3. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners submitted that this observation would confirm that the Lower Court on a wrong notion without understanding the application and march of law returned the complaint as not maintainable is not proper. In support of his contention, he relied on the judgment of the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of in the case of Hiral P.Harsora & Ors., vs. Kusum Narottamdas Harsora & Ors., reported in 2016 (10) SCC 165, wherein the Hon'ble Apex Court held that violence of Section 12 of the Domestic Violence Act arise in cases of subjecting to cruelty and the cruelty defined under Section 498 is both physical and mental. Further, the Hon'ble Apex Court held that of DV Act is akin to Section 498A of IPC and further proceedings against the female members under can be filed.

4.The learned counsel for the petitioners further relied on the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Rupali Devi vs. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors., in Criminal Appeal No.71 of 2012, wherein the Hon'ble Apex Court observed that the protection of woman from Domestic Violence Act, the object behind its enactment is to provide a civil remedy to victims of domestic violence as against the remedy in criminal law, which is what is provided under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code drawing parallel between the under Section 12 & 498A of