Posted:
The Supreme Court verdict declaring that
adultery is not a crime was welcomed by
many Thursday but some experts sounded
a note of caution, calling it anti-women and
warning that it could give a license to
people to have "illegitimate relationships.
A five-judge Constitution bench headed by
Chief Justice Dipak Misra unanimously
struck down Section 497 of the Indian
Penal Code dealing with the offence of
adultery, holding it manifestly arbitrary,
archaic and violative of the rights to
equality and equal opportunity to women.
Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati
Maliwal said decriminalising adultery
completely is just going to add to the pain
of women in the country.
"Totally disagree with the Supreme Court
judgement on adultery. The judgement is
anti-women. In a way, you have given an
open general license to the people of this
country to be in marriages but at the same
time have illegitimate relationships, she
said. "What is the sanctity of marriage? she
asked.
Social activist Brinda Adige also sought
clarity and asked whether the verdict allows
polygamy. "Because we know that men very
often marry two, three times and there is so
much of problem when the first, second or
third wife are abandoned. If adultery is not
a crime, how is this woman even going to
file a case against the husband who might
desert or abandon her. It's a concern, she
said.
Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury agreed
with her. "This is like criminalising the triple
talaq law. They have done that but now the
men will just abandon us or not give us
talaq. They will have polygamy or nikah
hallala which creates hell for us as women. I
am glad it's not a crime anymore but I do
not see how it helps. The court should...
give us clarity, she said.
The Supreme Court bench also held that
adultery would continue to be treated as
civil wrong and can be ground for
dissolution of marriage. There can't be any
social licence which destroys a home, the
chief justice said. Section 497 of the 158-
year-old IPC says: "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
offence of rape, is guilty of the offence of
adultery.
(This story has been published from a wire
agency feed without modifications to the
text. Only the headline has been changed.)
https://m.hindustantimes.com/india-news/sc-verdict-will-give-license-to-people-to-have-illegitimate-relationships-dcw-chief-swati-maliwal/story-z9eBfeovrJJQXI7kVIyZbO.html
adultery is not a crime was welcomed by
many Thursday but some experts sounded
a note of caution, calling it anti-women and
warning that it could give a license to
people to have "illegitimate relationships.
A five-judge Constitution bench headed by
Chief Justice Dipak Misra unanimously
struck down Section 497 of the Indian
Penal Code dealing with the offence of
adultery, holding it manifestly arbitrary,
archaic and violative of the rights to
equality and equal opportunity to women.
Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati
Maliwal said decriminalising adultery
completely is just going to add to the pain
of women in the country.
"Totally disagree with the Supreme Court
judgement on adultery. The judgement is
anti-women. In a way, you have given an
open general license to the people of this
country to be in marriages but at the same
time have illegitimate relationships, she
said. "What is the sanctity of marriage? she
asked.
Social activist Brinda Adige also sought
clarity and asked whether the verdict allows
polygamy. "Because we know that men very
often marry two, three times and there is so
much of problem when the first, second or
third wife are abandoned. If adultery is not
a crime, how is this woman even going to
file a case against the husband who might
desert or abandon her. It's a concern, she
said.
Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury agreed
with her. "This is like criminalising the triple
talaq law. They have done that but now the
men will just abandon us or not give us
talaq. They will have polygamy or nikah
hallala which creates hell for us as women. I
am glad it's not a crime anymore but I do
not see how it helps. The court should...
give us clarity, she said.
The Supreme Court bench also held that
adultery would continue to be treated as
civil wrong and can be ground for
dissolution of marriage. There can't be any
social licence which destroys a home, the
chief justice said. Section 497 of the 158-
year-old IPC says: "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
offence of rape, is guilty of the offence of
adultery.
(This story has been published from a wire
agency feed without modifications to the
text. Only the headline has been changed.)
https://m.hindustantimes.com/india-news/sc-verdict-will-give-license-to-people-to-have-illegitimate-relationships-dcw-chief-swati-maliwal/story-z9eBfeovrJJQXI7kVIyZbO.html
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