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Hans India
6 days ago
- Hans India
Allegations of impotency made by wife in divorce proceedings not defamatory: HC
Pune: The Bombay high court has declared that a wife's allegations of impotency against her husband during divorce proceedings do not constitute defamation and that such claims, when made to protect a woman's interests, are a necessary part of the legal process. Dismissing a man's defamation complaint against his estranged wife and her family, Justice S M Modak in his July 17 order, made public on Friday, noted that under the Hindu Marriage Act, allegations of impotency are 'very much relevant' and can be a legitimate ground for divorce. Justice Modak stated that a wife is 'justified in making those allegations to support her interest' and to prove that she suffered cruelty in the marriage. The man had argued that his wife's claims, made in her divorce and maintenance pleas and in a separate FIR, had become part of the public record and therefore damaged his reputation. The allegations of impotency being a ground for divorce are necessary, it said. 'This court feels that when litigation between spouses arises in a matrimonial relationship, then the wife is justified in making those allegations to support her interest,' the court said, adding the same cannot be held as defamatory. The man had stated that his estranged wife had, in her pleas seeking divorce and maintenance and also in her FIR against him and his parents, claimed that he was impotent. These documents were part of the public record and hence defamatory. The woman, her father and brother had moved the high court seeking to quash a sessions court order, directing a magistrate's court to conduct an inquiry into the man's defamation complaint. The woman, in her plea to the high court, said that her husband's impotence was one of the grounds for dissolving the marriage. (PTI)
Time of India
6 days ago
- Time of India
Wife's claims of impotence in divorce case not defamatory: HC
Mumbai: Bombay High Court has declared that a wife's allegations of impotence against her husband during divorce proceedings do not constitute defamation and that such claims, when made to protect a woman's interests, are a necessary part of the legal process. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Dismissing a man's defamation complaint against his estranged wife and her family, Justice S M Modak in his July 17 order, made public on Friday, noted that under the Hindu Marriage Act, allegations of impotency are "very much relevant" and can be a legitimate ground for divorce. Justice Modak stated a wife is "justified in making those allegations to support her interest" and to prove that she suffered cruelty in the marriage. The man had argued his wife's claims, made in her divorce and maintenance pleas and in a separate FIR, had become part of the public record and therefore damaged his reputation. The allegations of impotency being a ground for divorce are necessary, it said. "This court feels that when litigation between spouses arises in a matrimonial relationship, then the wife is justified in making those allegations to support her interest," the court said, adding the same cannot be held as defamatory. The man had stated his estranged wife had, in her pleas seeking divorce and maintenance and also in her FIR against him and his parents, claimed that he was impotent. PTI
Time of India
6 days ago
- Time of India
Wife's impotency claim against husband during divorce not defamation: Bombay High Court
Man claimed reputation was damaged Family sought to quash earlier court order Live Events Court supports wife's legal right (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court has held that a wife's allegation of impotency against her husband, made during divorce proceedings , cannot be treated as defamation . The court observed that such a claim is legally relevant and made to protect the woman's interest in a marital dispute, a PTI report S M Modak passed the order on July 17, which was made public on Friday. He dismissed a defamation complaint filed by a man against his estranged wife and her family. The court said that under the Hindu Marriage Act, impotency is a valid ground for divorce, and allegations made in that context are part of the legal process.'This court feels that when litigation between spouses arises in a matrimonial relationship, then the wife is justified in making those allegations to support her interest,' the court said. It added that such allegations 'cannot be held as defamatory.'The man had filed a defamation complaint, arguing that his wife's claims had harmed his reputation. According to him, she made the allegation of impotency not only in her divorce and maintenance pleas but also in a First Information Report (FIR) filed against him and his parents. Since these documents were now part of the public record, he said they caused damage to his woman, along with her father and brother, approached the Bombay High Court seeking to quash an earlier order by a sessions court. That order had asked a magistrate's court to begin an inquiry into the man's defamation complaint. In response, the woman told the high court that her husband's impotence was one of the reasons she wanted the marriage Modak ruled that the wife's statements, made during the course of legal proceedings, were 'justified' as she was trying to show that she had suffered cruelty during the marriage. The court said such allegations are part of the judicial process and are not defamatory in nature.(Inputs from PTI)
New Indian Express
6 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Allegations of impotency made by wife during divorce proceedings 'not' defamatory: Bombay HC
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court has declared that a wife's allegations of impotency against her husband during divorce proceedings do not constitute defamation and that such claims, when made to protect a woman's interests, are a necessary part of the legal process. Dismissing a man's defamation complaint against his estranged wife and her family, Justice S M Modak in his July 17 order, made public on Friday, noted that under the Hindu Marriage Act, allegations of impotency are "very much relevant" and can be a legitimate ground for divorce. Justice Modak stated that a wife is "justified in making those allegations to support her interest" and to prove that she suffered cruelty in the marriage.
Time of India
26-07-2025
- Time of India
30 yrs on, man acquitted of abetting his wife's suicide
Mumbai: Nearly three decades after being convicted of abetting his wife's suicide by being cruel and harassing her about her complexion, among other things, a shepherd, then 23, was acquitted by Bombay high court. Domestic quarrels, including remarks about complexion and threats of a second marriage, do not constitute criminal harassment under the law, observed Justice S M Modak, who on July 11 set the man free. Quashing the man's conviction and five-year rigorous imprisonment for suicide abetment under section 306 of erstwhile Indian Penal Code (IPC) and one-year rigorous imprisonment for cruelty to his wife under section 498A, IPC, Justice Modak, sitting singly, said, "The legislature contemplates that every dispute, quarrel, or altercation arising from matrimonial life are not criminal offences. It will take the colour of criminal law only when there are no alternatives for the wife but to put an end to her life because of the harassment. " You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai In 1998, following his conviction, the man appealed before HC. He was in Satara jail at the time and later out on bail. The conviction was unsupported by evidence, HC said and criticised the trial court for having "forgotten basic principles and ingredients of section 306 of IPC (suicide abetment)". Abetment needs to be proved for suicide, HC said. On record, though wife "was being taunted on account of her complexion, I do not think that it will fall within the explanation to section 498-A..." said Justice Modak. The prosecution also failed to prove the wife's suicide was due to harassment. The shepherd's father, also a co-accused, complained of her cooking, it was alleged. The marriage was in 1993, and the wife died in Jan 1998. Both sides shared the wedding expenses, HC noted, and there was no dowry demand. As a goatherd, he was away from home, "for a long time" and she would go to her mother's house, complain about harassment, and ended her life one day, HC noted. There seemed to be quarrels arising out of matrimonial life. "They are domestic quarrels," HC said and offence of cruelty requires husband's wilful conduct to be "of a high degree," which HC said in the case could not be considered so high as to compel the suicide. "...the judgment of the trial court cannot be sustained in the eyes of the law," HC held and acquitted the husband.
