Bombay High Court rules its not cruelty to force wife to sleep on carpet, do domestic housework despite being sick with typhoid
On November 9, the Bombay High Court acquitted a man and his family who were accused of mental torture towards the daughter-in-law.
According to The Indian Express, the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court ruled that his alleged actions towards the deceased such as ill-treatment, making her sleep on the carpet at night, not allowing her to watch tv, go alone to the temple or visit neighbours, did not account for cruelty under the section 498A of the Indian Penal Code- but could be seen as ‘harassment’.
“None of the allegations has any severity or such nature of allegations would not constitute physical and mental cruelty as almost all allegations are pertaining to domestic affairs of the house of accused..” the bench ruled in a verdict.
According to the details, the deceased was not allowed to interact with her neighbours, was made to bring water for the family from the supply in the village at 1:30 am, and was forced to complete domestic work despite being sick with typhoid.
The bench also further noted that between the time the deceased first spoke to her family about the mistreatment she faced from her in-laws was in March 2003, and in May 2003 she had committed suicide.
The High Court said that there was a gap of two months in communication between the compliant and the deceased, which showed that there was little evidence to prove that the mistreatment from the family members had triggered the woman’s suicide.
“….There is no evidence to show that at that relevant point or any proximity to the suicide, there was any demand, cruelty or mal-treatment so as to connect them with the suicidal death. What triggered the suicide has remained a mystery..” the ruling said as quoted by the Indian Express.
Bombay High Court ruling sparks backlash from women on social media
Since the ruling was published by newspapers, social media users have expressed their fury towards the misogyny that demands Indian women to bear torture and brutality at the hands of the patriarchy, and denies them justice for their murders.
As one user pointed out:
“The woman died by suicide as a result of these actions, but none of them amount to cruelty. Its pathetic how much women are expected to endure and still go on even without a slight complaint.”
Some users suggested that Indian women should take some inspiration from Korean feminists and start the 4B movement within the country.
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