Respondent has filed the complaint under the Act. Admittedly, petitioners are not residing in the matrimonial home of the respondent. {Para 4}
6. A combined reading of the above definitions reveals that an 'aggrieved person' is a woman, who is in a domestic relationship with the respondent and has been subjected to any act of domestic violence by the respondent. 'Domestic relationship' would mean a relationship between two persons, who live or have at any point of time lived together in a shared household. 'Shared household' means a household where the person aggrieved lives at any stage in a domestic relationship either singly or along with respondent. The respondent has, thus, never resided with the petitioners in the household along with her husband to constitute an offence under the Act against the petitioners.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
Criminal Misc. No. M-22385 of 2011 (O&M)
Decided On: 11.10.2012
Girish and Ors. Vs. Poonam
Hon'ble Judges/Coram:
Sabina, J.
Citation: MANU/PH/2999/2012.
1. Petitioners have preferred this petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for quashing of criminal complaint along with Form-I under Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (for short the Act) (Annexure P-6) as well as notice issued under Section 12 of the Act and all the subsequent proceedings arising therefrom. Learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that the petitioners were not residing in the matrimonial home of the respondent. Hence, the petitioners could not be prosecuted qua commission of offence punishable under the Act.
2. Learned counsel for the respondent, on the other hand, has opposed the petition but has failed to controvert the factual aspect of the submission made by learned counsel for the petitioner to the effect that the petitioners were not residing in the matrimonial home of the respondent.
3. After hearing learned counsel for the parties, I am of the opinion that the present petition deserves to be allowed.
4. Respondent has filed the complaint under the Act. Admittedly, petitioners are not residing in the matrimonial home of the respondent. Petitioner No. 1 Girish is the elder brother of the husband of the respondent and is residing in House No. 115-B. Sudan Garden, Najafgarh, New Delhi-43. Petitioner No. 2 Dinesh is the cousin brother of the husband of respondent and is resident of House No. 1957-B, Malka Ganj, Delhi. Petitioner No. 3 Tej Ram Bhandoria is the uncle of the husband of respondent and is resident of House No. 1911, Gali Ohiran, Malka Ganj, Delhi-7. Husband of respondent was residing in House No. 1957, Gali Kumharo Wali, Delhi along with his mother. Since petitioners were not residing in the matrimonial home of respondent, they cannot be prosecuted under the Act.
5. Section 2 (a), (f), (q) and (s) of the Act read as under:-
(a) "aggrieved person" means any woman who is, or has been, in a domestic relationship with the respondent and who alleges to have been subjected to any act of domestic violence by the respondent;
(f) "domestic relationship" means a relationship between two persons who live or have, at any point of time, lived together in a shared household, when they are related by' consanguinity, marriage, or through a relationship in the nature of marriage, adoption or are family members living together as a joint family;
(q) "respondent" means any adult male person who is, or has been, in a domestic relationship with the aggrieved person and against whom the aggrieved person has sought any relief under this Act:
Provided that an aggrieved wife or female living in a relationship in the nature of a marriage may also file a complaint against a relative of the husband or the male partner;
(s) "shared household" means a household where the person aggrieved lives or at any stage has lived in a domestic relationship either singly or along with the respondent and includes such a household whether owned or tenanted either jointly by the aggrieved person and the respondent, or owned or tenanted by either of them in respect of which either the aggrieved person or the respondent or both jointly or singly have any right, title, interest or equity and includes such a household which may belong to the joint family of which the respondent is a member, irrespective of whether the respondent or the aggrieved person has any right, title or interest in the shared household.
6. A combined reading of the above definitions reveals that an 'aggrieved person' is a woman, who is in a domestic relationship with the respondent and has been subjected to any act of domestic violence by the respondent. 'Domestic relationship' would mean a relationship between two persons, who live or have at any point of time lived together in a shared household. 'Shared household' means a household where the person aggrieved lives at any stage in a domestic relationship either singly or along with respondent. The respondent has, thus, never resided with the petitioners in the household along with her husband to constitute an offence under the Act against the petitioners. In these circumstances, the continuation of criminal proceedings against the petitioners would be nothing but an abuse of process of law. Accordingly, the petition is allowed. Criminal complaint along with Form-I under Section 12 of the Act (Annexure P-6) as well as notice issued under Section 12 of the Act and all the subsequent proceedings arising therefrom, qua the-petitioners, are quashed.
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