1. Good citations
1. Delhi High Court. PARTIES: Nagesh Malik vs Payal Malik, Crl. Rev. P. No. 252/2010, 253/2010 & 338/2010, COURT: DELHI HIGH COURT, Date of Order: 29th July, 2010, BENCH: JUSTICE SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA, AVAILABLE SOURCE:- https://indiankanoon.org/doc/234540/ , https://lobis.nic.in/dhc/ :- Under no circumstances it can be said that brother of husband, who was a major and independent, living separately from this husband and wife, had any kind of domestic relationship or moral or legal responsibility/obligations towards his brother wife. He had not lived in domestic relationship with Payal Malik at any point of time. Merely because a person is brother of the husband he cannot be arrayed as a respondent, nor does an MM gets authority over each and every relative of the husband, without going into the fact whether a domestic relationship or shared household was there between the aggrieved person and the respondent.
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1. The relationship-domestic violence, false accusations, misuse of act has been elicited in the same case of above quoted in the following words:- PARTIES: VIJAY VERMA VS STATE N.C.T. OF DELHI & ANR., Crl. M.C. No.3878/2009, COURT: DELHI HIGH COURT, Date of Order: 13th August, 2010, BENCH: JUSTICE SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA, AVAILABLE SOURCE:- https://lobis.nic.in/dhc/SND/judgement/16-08-2010/SND13082010CRLMM38782009.pdf :- Filing of a petition under Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act by the petitioner taking shelter of domestic relationship and domestic violence needs to be considered so that this Act is not misused to settle property disputes. Domestic relationship is defined under the Act in Section 2(f) as under: “(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.” A perusal of this provision makes it clear that domestic relationship arises in respect of an aggrieved person if the aggrieved person had lived together with the respondent in a shared household. This living together can be either soon before filing of petition or ‘at any point of time’. The problem arises with the meaning of phrase “at any point of time”. Does that mean that living together at any stage in the past would give right to a person to become aggrieved person to claim domestic relationship? I consider that “at any point of time” under the Act only means where an aggrieved person has been continuously living in the shared household as a matter of right but for some reason the aggrieved person has to leave the house temporarily and when she returns, she is not allowed to enjoy her right to live in the property. However, “at any point of time” cannot be defined as “at any point of time in the past” whether the right to live survives or not. For example if there is a joint family where father has several sons with daughters-in-law living in a house and ultimately sons, one by one or together, decide that they should live separate with their own families and they establish separate household and start living with their respective families separately at different places; can it be said that wife of each of the sons can claim a right to live in the house of father-in-law because at one point of time she along with her husband had lived in the shared household. If this meaning is given to the shared household then the whole purpose of Domestic Violence Act shall stand defeated. Where a family member leaves the shared household to establish his own household, and actually establishes his own household, he cannot claim to have a right to move an application under Section 12 of Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act on the basis of domestic relationship. Domestic relationship comes to an end once the son along with his family moved out of the joint family and established his own household or when a daughter gets married and establishes her own household with her husband. Such son, daughter, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, if they have any right in the property say because of coparcenary or because of inheritance, such right can be claimed by an independent civil suit and an application under Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act cannot be filed by a person who has established his separate household and ceased to have a domestic relationship. Domestic relationship continues so long as the parties live under the same roof and enjoy living together in a shared household. Only a compelled or temporarily going out by aggrieved person shall fall in phrase ‘at any point of time’, say, wife has gone to her parents house or to a relative or some other female member has gone to live with her some relative, and, all her articles and belongings remain within the same household and she has not left the household permanently, the domestic relationship continues. However, where the living together has been given up and a separate household is established and belongings are removed, domestic relationship comes to an end and a relationship of being relatives of each other survives. This is very normal in families that a person whether, a male or a female attains self sufficiency after education or otherwise and takes a job lives in some other city or country, enjoys life there, settles home there. He cannot be said to have domestic relationship with the persons whom he left behind. His relationship that of a brother and sister, father and son, father and daughter, father and daughter-in-law etc survives but the domestic relationship of living in a joint household would not survive & comes to an end.
2. Regarding Shared Household in the act it is explained in following words:- PARTIES: VIJAY VERMA VS STATE N.C.T. OF DELHI & ANR., Crl. M.C. No.3878/2009, COURT: DELHI HIGH COURT, Date of Order: 13th August, 2010, BENCH: JUSTICE SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA, AVAILABLE SOURCE:- https://lobis.nic.in/dhc/SND/judgement/16-08-2010/SND13082010CRLMM38782009.pdf :- This meaning of domestic relationship has sense when we come to definition of domestic violence and the purpose of the Act. The purpose of the Act is to give remedy to the aggrieved persons against domestic violence. The domestic violence can take place only when one is living in shared household with the respondents. The acts of abuses, emotional or economic, physical or s*xual, verbal or nonverbal if committed when one is living in the same shared household constitute domestic violence. However, such acts of violence can be committed even otherwise also when one is living separate. When such acts of violence take place when one is living separate, these may be punishable under different provisions of IPC or other penal laws, but, they cannot be covered under Domestic Violence Act. One has to make distinction between violence committed on a person living separate in a separate household and the violence committed on a person living in the shared household. Only violence committed by a person while living in the shared household can constitute domestic violence. A person may be threatening another person 100 miles away on telephone or by messages etc. This may amount to an offence under IPC, but, this cannot amount to domestic violence. Similarly, emotional blackmail, economic abuse and physical abuse can take place even when persons are living miles away. Such abuses are not covered under Domestic Violence Act but they are liable to be punished under Penal laws. Domestic Violence is a violence which is committed when parties are in domestic relationship, sharing same household and sharing all the household goods with an opportunity to commit violence.
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2.
1. It is also pertinent to mention Section 2(q) of the Act, such application under Section 12 of the Act cannot be filed against the petitione who are the ladies. In Section 2(q) of the Act the term respondent has been defined as under :- (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. Thus, it is provided by this definition that an application can be filed by an aggrieved person including the respondent claiming relief under the Act only against the adult male person.
2. I (2008) DMC 1 delivered by the Hon'ble Madhya Pradesh High Court held that "" Complaint for this offence can only be filed against adult male person and further held in 3( C ) that as provided by sec 2(q)of the act, such application u/s 12 of the act can't be filed against petitioner's who are ladies ".
3. I (2007) DMC 1 (SC) = 2007(3) ALT (Crl.) 1(SC) delivered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India where in it was held"claim for alternative accommodation can only be made against the husband but not to the In-laws".
4. Thus, it is provided by this definition that an application can be filed by an aggrieved person including the respondent claiming relief under the Act only against the adult male person.
5. Interpretation of the statute by delhi High Court. PARTIES: Nagesh Malik vs Payal Malik, Crl. Rev. P. No. 252/2010, 253/2010 & 338/2010, COURT: DELHI HIGH COURT, Date of Order: 29th July, 2010, BENCH: JUSTICE SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA, AVAILABLE SOURCE:- https://indiankanoon.org/doc/234540/ , https://lobis.nic.in/dhc/ :- It is apparent that in order to make a person as respondent in a petition under Section 12, there must exist a domestic relationship between the respondent and the aggrieved person. If there is no domestic relationship between the aggrieved person and the respondent, the Court of MM cannot pass an order against such a person under the Act. Domestic relationship is defined under Section 2 (f) of the Act and is as under: "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.
6. Interpretation of the statute by delhi High Court. PARTIES: Nagesh Malik vs Payal Malik, Crl. Rev. P. No. 252/2010, 253/2010 & 338/2010, COURT: DELHI HIGH COURT, Date of Order: 29th July, 2010, BENCH: JUSTICE SHIV NARAYAN DHINGRA, AVAILABLE SOURCE:- https://indiankanoon.org/doc/234540/ , https://lobis.nic.in/dhc/ :- It is apparent that domestic relationship arises between the two persons, who have lived together in a shared household and 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. The definition speaks of living together at any point of time however it does not speak of having relation at any point of time. Thus, if the domestic relationship continued and if the parties have lived together at any point of time in a shared household, the person can be a respondent but if the relationship does not continue and the relationship had been in the past and is not in the present, a person cannot be made respondent on the ground of a past relationship. The domestic relationship between the aggrieved person and the respondent must be present and alive at the time when complaint under Domestic Violence Act is filed and if this relationship is not alive on the date when complaint is filed, the domestic relationship cannot be said to be there.
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