'Never Lived Together': Telangana High Court Quashes Domestic Violence Case Against USA-Based Sister-In-Law

The Telangana High Court quashed the proceedings under Domestic Violence Act against a woman living in America accused of harassing her sister-in-law for dowry via phone calls, observing that the two never lived together in shared house at any point of time. The respondent no. 2 and her husband (petitioner no. 1) got married in 2020. She claimed that her in-laws looked after her for three months and thereafter her in laws made her to do all the household works without the help of any one. She claimed that later they started harassing her for additional dowry. The accusation was that the petitioner-respondent residing in America, used to harass her sister-in-law by demanding dowry via phone calls.Justice Juvvadi Sridevi quashed the proceeding by stating that, “as per the provisions of DV Act, which is quasi civil in nature, aggrieved person who is in domestic relationship in a shared household at some or the other point with the respondent or petitioner whomsoever, shall only come under the purview of the said Act for the purpose of domestic violence" It referred to provisions of the DV Act specifically domestic relationship and shared household and said: “it is nowhere established that the petitioner-respondent No.5 (sister-in-law) and respondent No.2 have ever resided in a domestic relationship and lived together in a shared house either singly or along with petitioner No.1 at any point of time. Therefore, the ingredients of the offences under DV Act are not made out.”The Assistant Public Prosecutor for the State contended that there are specific allegations against the petitioner and the truth or otherwise of the allegations levelled against her can only be determined after conducting full-fledged trial before the Trial Court.The court however said that no time, date and particulars with regard to the alleged harassment made by the petitioner were given and only vague and omnibus allegations are made against the petitioner.Quashing the case against petitioner, the high court allowed the plea. Case details: CRIMINAL PETITION No.11818 of 2023Click Here To Read/Download Order

'Never Lived Together': Telangana High Court Quashes Domestic Violence Case Against USA-Based Sister-In-Law

Rachel Mary Jacob

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