Top 5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Section 498A IPC

Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code was introduced in the year 1983. This section was added to protect a married woman from subject to cruelty from her husband or her in-laws. The term “cruelty” here refers to any harm caused to the person both mentally or physically. Section 498A IPC protects a woman from harassment related to dowry or any marital issues. According to this section, the accused is subjected to 3 years of punishment or fine. Though this section was introduced to protect women from exploitation, it has got some disadvantages too, which we shall see in this article.

What is Section 498A IPC?

Here’s the text of the Article 498A IPC as mentioned in the Indian Penal Code:

Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty.—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.

Advantages of Section 498A IPC

• Prevents the Exploitation of Women:

The exploitation of women has always been a critical issue since for years. One of the major advantages of introducing this section is protecting women from getting exploited.  If any woman is being subjected to cruelty as explained in the section, then it would be taken as a punishable offense. And whoever subjects her to cruelty shall be punished for three years or pay a penalty fine.

• Empowers the Women:

Section 498A seems to have empowered women in Indian. It has encouraged women to come forward and file complaints. Initially, women hesitated to raise voice against the harassment with the fear of not being heard.  With the increased number of cases under this section, women do not feel hesitated any more to register their complaints. Women are now voicing against her husband or in-laws rather than staying silent in such gravity situations.

• Effectively Controls the Suicide Rates:

Given increased cases of cruelty on women by her husband or her in-laws, 498A was introduced. The number of suicidal cases due to cruelty has decreased greatly after the introduction of 498A IPC. Before the introduction of this section, it was found that about 40% of women deaths were suicidal cases. Reduction of suicidal cases is one of the main objectives behind introducing this law, which has been carried out effectively.

• The Deaths due to Dowry have been Reduced:

If a person has caused dowry death to a woman, then he would be taken in custody or may be punished. Increase in the number of dowry deaths is a serious concern for Indian Law. Therefore, 498A was introduced to reduce the cases of dowry deaths. If a woman is mentally or physically abused for not bringing a dowry with her, she has all the rights to register a complaint and seek justice. This provides them with an option to seek their right to live instead of committing suicide.

• Makes the In-Laws More Responsible:

All the cases registered under this section and the punishment given to them has set an example for others. Husbands and his relatives are now becoming more concerned about their responsibility and non-negligible towards their duties. The section 498A IPC thereby ensures that every woman needs to be treated with respect and care.

Disadvantages of Section 498A IPC

Apart from having so many advantages for the women there, the article 498A IPC has a huge number of shortcomings which need to be addressed to soon. There are several disadvantages of this Act which are making the premise redundant. The top 5 disadvantages of the section 498A IPC are:

• Easily Misused:

Many women use this power as a weapon against their husbands and their relatives. There are many cases under 498A, which involves wrong allegation cases. Many times, the women put false allegations on her husband of being beaten or getting exploited to instill in them a fear. In many cases, the husband is the victim but still ends up getting punished, and his family is left at the mercy of an ill-minded woman.

• Lack of Investigation increases Blackmails:

There is no proper investigation made on the complaints registered by the woman. In most of the cases, the husband is directly taken into custody without even investigating if that allegation is right or not. Therefore, it cannot be guaranteed completely that all the cases registered by the women under 498A are entirely true. This is misused by the privileged women in most of the cases.

• Too Complex a Process:

From registering a complaint to availing justice, section 498A involves a complicated process. It includes a lot of paperwork to finish the formalities. Moreover, it includes a lot of time and efforts. This discourages many women as they feel uneasy taking their time out, go to the police station, and file complaints. Furthermore, they feel the whole process testing their patience level to get justice, which is a clear violation of the saying Justice Delayed is Justice Denied.

• Unreliable Evidence:

When women resister their case, many times, they are asked for evidence to prove their point.  In many cases, women fail to find evidence in to file the case. There have been many cases which are declined due to no evidence presented. Not only women, but it happens in the case of men too. If they want to prove the allegation put on them wrong, they are asked to bring the evidence. And failure to present the evidence may lead to non-consideration of the complaint. This makes the law heavily biased, which is against the fundamental principle of equality as guaranteed by the Constitution of India.

• Social Discouragement Enhanced:

In most of the cases, it was found that women gather all their courage to raise voice against the harassment but don’t file a case. The reason behind this is the discouragement of her family members, mainly in rural areas. Therefore, the real victims do not get to use the act at all while it is being misused by the privileged ones. The society is yet to accept this and hence shames the women raising their voices. Hence, due to a fear of social boycott, women are discouraged from taking any actions. 

Conclusion

Section 498A IPC has helped many women to get justice against the atrocities committed by their in-laws. However, it has got a few negative points too. Although women empowerment is a need of the hour, it is mandatory to make sure that no injustice is done to the men as well. A reformation in the act is required at the earliest to reap the benefits of this act by the last person of the pyramid.

Impact Of Section 497 On Married Indian Couples

In 2017, a significant decision was passed by a three-judge Bench which struck down a colonial-era law that prescribed maximum imprisonment of five years to men for adultery. The instant Writ Petition was filed by one Mr. Joseph Shine under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. It challenged the validity of Section 497 IPC, read with Section 198(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPc). The Bench appreciated the submissions advanced by the learned counsel for the Petitioner and thereby felt the need to have a re-look at the constitutionality of the provision.

In this article, we will answer questions pertaining to the non-constitutionality of the provisions of Section 497 and its impact on married couples.

What is Section 497

According to section 497, “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 offense 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.”  Simply put, only a man can be a victim or accused/culprit under the existing reading of Section 497 of the IPC.

The provisions of the said section are very orthodox in nature and are based on societal presumptions. The constitutional rights of a woman, bestowed upon her by virtue of birth, are being gravely infringed upon. Ordinarily, the criminal law proceeds on gender neutrality but in this provision, the said concept is absent. On a perusal of the language of the said provision, the words “without the consent or connivance of that man” only reflects the perilous inequality and creates a dent on the individual independent identity of a woman.

Section 497 makes two classifications

The first classification is based on who has the right to prosecute. It is only the husband of the married woman who indulges in adultery, is considered to be an aggrieved person and is given the right to prosecute for the offense of adultery. Conversely, a married woman who is the wife of the adulterous man has no right to prosecute either her husband or his paramour.

The second classification is based on who can be prosecuted. It is only the adulterous man who can be
prosecuted for committing adultery and not the woman, even though the relationship is consensual; the adulterous woman is not considered to be an “abettor” to the offense.

The adultery law, therefore, has been criticized for treating women as property or chattel of their husbands. Consequently, the offense of adultery was treated as an injury to the husband, since it was considered to be a “theft‟ of his property, for which he could proceed to prosecute the offender.

Findings of the Apex Court

In light of the above arguments, it was observed that “The time when wives were invisible to the law and
lived in the shadows of their husbands, has long since gone by. Legislation that perpetuates such stereotypes in relationships, and institutionalizes discrimination is a clear violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed by Part III of the Constitution. There is, therefore, no justification for the continuance of Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code. framed in 1860, to remain on the statute book.”

Section 198(2) of the Cr.P.C. which contains the procedure for prosecution shall be unconstitutional only to the extent that it is applicable to the offense of Adultery under Section 497.

Adultery and Married couples

However, the issue remains as to whether “adultery‟ must be treated as a penal offense subject to criminal sanctions, or marital wrong which is a valid ground for divorce.

A criminal wrong is the one which is committed against the community at large i.e where the community is the victim of such a wrong. For instance, Murder is an offense committed not just against the family of the deceased but also against the society in general. On the contrary, a private wrong is the one which is committed against an individual. For example, a breach of contract.

Adultery may be an act committed to private by two consenting adults, it nevertheless is not a victim-less wrong. It negatively impacts the institution of marriage and family, the well being of the children and society in general, and therefore must be subject to penal consequences. Hence the State has a legitimate public interest in making it a criminal offense.

On contrary to this view, adultery is a marital wrong and therefore should only invite civil consequences. To criminalize a certain content is to declare that it is a public wrong which would justify public censure, and warrant the use of criminal sanction against such harm. However, a person should be able to make personal decisions in his/her life. such an act should be protected from public censure.

Adultery is undoubtedly a moral wrong committed against the spouse and the family. However, the fundamental right to live with dignity includes the right not to be subjected to public censure and punishment by the State except where absolutely necessary the State must consider whether the civil remedy will serve the purpose. Where a  civil remedy for a wrongful act is sufficient, it may not warrant criminal sanction by the State.

Conclusion

Before the enactment of the Marriage Laws, 1976, adultery was treated as the conduct of grave immorality and was not considered as a ground for divorce. Post the 1976 Amendment, the grounds for judicial separation and divorce are the same and it is a mark of great development in the Hindu Personal Laws.

While reading the judgment, Chief Justice Dipak Misra said, “Adultery cannot be a criminal offense, however, it can be a ground for civil issues like divorce.” It has been defined under Section 13(1) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and Section 22 of the Indian Divorce Act makes provisions for a decree of judicial separation on the grounds of adultery.

Read Also:   The New Rules For Divorce In India

To conclude, it can only be said that laws which may be relevant at a given period demand various changes with the passage of time. Education, development in civil-political rights and socio-economic conditions have drastically undergone a change. Therefore, the historical background in which Section 497 was framed, is no longer relevant in contemporary society.