Husband's Friend Is Not His Relative, Can't Be Booked U/S 498A IPC: Bombay High Court

A male friend of the husband is not his relative and thus cannot be booked under section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), held the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court recently, while quashing a First Information Report (FIR) lodged against a man booked under the said offence. 

A division of Justices Anil Pansare and Mahendra Nerlikar noted that one of the applicants before it was the husband's friend, who was named by the complainant wife in her FIR against her husband and his parents. 

The judges referred to the ruling of the Supreme Court in which the top court had held that a girlfriend or even a woman with whom a man has had romantic or sexual relations outside of marriage court not be construed to be a relative. The judges noted that the word 'relative' brings within its purview a 'status' which is conferred either by “blood or marriage or adoption.”

"Therefore, we have no hesitation in observing that the same analogy would be applied while interpreting the term 'relative' defined under Section 498-A of the IPC in respect of a 'friend.' A friend cannot be said to be a relative as he is neither a blood relative nor he was having any relation through marriage or adoption. Therefore, considering these facts and upon plain reading of Section 498-A of the IPC, we come to the conclusion that a friend of husband will not fall under the definition of 'relative' of the husband as contemplated under Section 498-A of the IPC," the judges held in the order passed on July 29. 

According to the FIR filed by the woman on June 13, 2022, the friend of her husband often visited their matrimonial house and instigated the husband to demand a car and a plot from the wife's parents. The friend was further accused of insisting the husband not to cohabit with the complainant wife on her failure to fulfil the demand. The friend was also accused of instigating the husband to drive the wife out of her matrimonial house for failing to meet the demands. 

However, the bench noted that since the applicant is a friend and does not qualify the status of a 'relative' of the husband, he cannot be made to face trial under section 498A and therefore, quashed the FIR and also the chargesheet filed against him by the Chandrapur Police.

Appearance:

Advocate SA Mohta appeared for the Applicant. 

Additional Public Prosecutor SS Jachack represented the State. 

Advocate S Patrikar represented the Complainant. 

Case Title: NMM vs State of Maharashtra (Criminal Application 1619 of 2023) 

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