Chapter XX of IPC deals with offences relating to marriage. All these offences are within the institution of marriage. chapter XX-A containing only one section (s.498A) dealing with cruelty to a woman by her husband or relatives to coerce her and her parents to meet material greed of dowry was added to the IPC by criminal law (Second amendment Act,1983).

Following are main offences under this chapter:

1. Mock or invalid marriage (section 493 and 496).

2. Bigamy (section 494 and 495).

3. Adultery (section 497)

4. Criminal elopement- seduction (section498)

5. Cruelty by husband or relatives of husband (section 498A)

What is the new rule for 498A?

The key guideline issued is that after lodging of the F.I.R. or the complaint case without exhausting the “Cooling-Period” of two months, no arrest or any coercive action shall be taken against the husband or his family members in order to derail the proceedings before the Family Welfare Committee.

1.Mock or invalid marriage (section 493 and 496)

Mock marriage is invalid marriage/deceitful or fraudulent marriage. Any man who, through deception, leads a woman who is not legally wed to him to believe that she is and leads her to cohabit with him or engage in sexual activity with him in that belief is punishable by imprisonment of either kind for a term that may ten years and is also subject to a fine. It is non-cognizable and non-bailable.

INGREDIENTS

1. Deceit or causing false belief.
2. Cohabitation or sexual intercourse with the person causing such believes.
3. In other words , Section 493, IPC only punishes a man for obtaining the body of a woman by a deceitful assurance that he is her husband. The essence of the section is therefore the deception caused by a man on a woman in the consequence  of which  she is led to believe that she is lawfully married to him while in the fact that they are not lawfully married.

2. Bigamy (section 494 and 495)

This under English law is known as Bigamy. This section applies to Hindus, Christians, Paris whether male or female but in case of Muslims, it applies only to females as under the muslim personal law, males are allowed in bigamy but not women. In other words, BIGAMY – Bigamy is the condition of having two wives or two husbands at the same time. The second marriage to someone who is already legally married is void and may be annulled, while there is no effect on the first marriage. Bigamy may be commited knowingly or unknowingly. When it is commited knowingly, the person is  guilty of a crime, but it is seldom prosecuted unless it is part of a fraudulent scheme to get another’s property or some other felony.

The offence of Bigamy is Non-Cognizable, Bailable, Compoundable and triable by a magistrate of first class. Except for Muslim males, bigamy is an offense in case of all person living in India irrespective of religion, caste, sex. Muslim personal laws insists for monogamy for females  However, if a Muslim man marries under a Special Marriage Act and not under the Muslim Law, he would be guilty of Bigamy.

INGREDIENTS

1) The accused must have contracted the first marriage
2) Whilst the first marriage was subsisting, the accused must have contacted a second marriage
3) Both the marriages must be valid.What is important to keep in mind is that not only the first but the second marriage must also be a valid marriage in accordance with the Hindu Marriage Act.

Exceptions:

1. Any person whose marriage with such husband or wife has been declared void by a Court of competent jurisdiction
2. Where the spouse has been continually absent for a period of 7 years and not heard to be alive within such period

Punishment:

The person guilty of the offence of bigamy shall be punished with imprisonment, which may extent to seven years and shall also be liable to fine. Section 494 prescribed punishment up to 10 years and also fine for concealment of the former marriage from person with whom subsequent marriage is contracted.

3. Adultery (section 497)

Adultery means ” sexual intercourse” by a man with a married woman, who is not his wife, with her consent and without the consent or connivance of her husband, not amounting to rape.Whoever has sexual intercourse with a person who is and whom he knows or has reason to believe to be the wife of another man, without the consent or connivance of that man, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, is guilty of the offence of adultery, and shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, or with fine, or with both. In such a case, the wife shall not be punishable as an abettor.

INGREDIENTS

In order to constitute the offence of adultery, the following must be established:–

(i) Sexual intercourse between a married woman and a man who is not her husband;

(ii) The man who has sexual intercourse with the married woman must know or has reason to believe that she is the wife of another man;

(iii) Such sexual intercourse must take place with her consent, i.e., it must not amount to rape;

(iv) Sexual intercourse with the married woman must take place without the consent or connivance of her husband.

Punishment:

In adultery, man alone is punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years or with fine or with both. The woman is not subject to punishment even as an abettor, though she is a consenting party.

4. Criminal elopement- seduction (section 498)

1) Taking or enticing  away or  concealing or detaining the wife of another man from 
a) that man; or 
b) any person having care of her on behalf of that man

2) Knowledge or reason to believe that she is wife of another man;
3) Such taking , concealing or detaining must be with the intent that she may have illicit intercourse with any person.

This section punishes person who takes away or entices or detains the wife of another with criminal intent. The main locus of the offence is taking the wife of a husband from his custody. It does not have to be forceful. This section therefore provides protection to husbands, The subject-matter of this offence is married women only.

5. Cruelty by husband or relatives of husband (section 498 A)

Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.

Explanation. — For the purposes of this section, “cruelty” means—

(a) any wilful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (whether mental or physical) of the woman; or

(b) harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view to coercing her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or any person related to her to meet such demand.

Period of Limitation

As per Section 468 CrPC, a complaint alleging commission of an offence under Section 498-A can be filed within 3 years of the alleged incident. However, Section 473 CrPC enables the Court to take cognizance of an offence after the period of limitation if it is satisfied that it is necessary so to do in the interest of justice.

The essence of the offence in Section 498-A is cruelty. It is a continuing offence and on each occasion on which the woman was subjected to cruelty, she would have a new starting point of limitation, Arun Vyas v. Anita Vyas, (1999) 4 SCC 690.

INGREDIENTS

• Woman must be married;
• Such woman should be subjected to harassment or cruelty and
• Such harassment or cruelty should have been caused by that woman’s husband or his relatives

Punishment:

As per the provision under 498A IPC, the husband or his relative who commits cruelty against a married woman can be punished with imprisonment upto 3 years along with fine.

In this case, too, the Supreme Court gave directions to prevent misuse of Section 498-A IPC which were further modified in Social Action Forum for Manav Adhikar v. Union of India,2018 SCC online SC 1501. These directions include:

(a) Complaints under Section 498-A and other connected offences may be investigated only by a designated Investigating Officer of the area.

(b) If a settlement is reached between the parties, it is open to them to approach the High Court under Section 482 seeking quashing of proceedings or any other order.

(c) If a bail application is filed with at least one day’s notice to the Public Prosecutor/complainant, the same may be decided as far as possible on the same day. Recovery of disputed dowry items may not, by itself, be a ground for denial of bail if maintenance or other rights of wife/minor children can otherwise be protected.

(d) In respect of persons ordinarily residing out of India impounding of passports or issuance of Red Corner Notice should not be a routine.

(e) These directions will not apply in case of tangible physical injuries or death.

Reema Aggarwal v. Anupam AIR 2004 SC 1418

It was argued that ‘husband’ of ‘second wife’ who marries her during the subsistence of his earlier legal marriage, is not husband within the meaning of section 498 A and the second wife, therefore, cannot invoke section 498 A for cruelty and harassment caused to her by him or his relatives. The appellant, Reema Aggarwal, who was harassed by her husband and his relatives for not bringing sufficient dowry, consumed poisonous substance .She admitted that she married him during lifetime of his first wife. Based on this fact her husband with others, was charged-sheeted under sections 307 and 498 A.

Conclusion:

Marriage-related offences are protected, and women have the right to report abuse if their husbands or other family members treat them badly. Additionally, it aims to put an end to crimes including dowry deaths, dowry demands, and harassment of women.