Pinnacle court of India said that a lady has right to reside in houses of mother and MIL
31-05-2022
The Supreme Court on Monday observed that a girl incorporates a right to residence at the homes of her mother further as mother-in-law and therefore the court won't allow anyone to throw her out simply because they can not stand her.
"Sending away a girl simply because you can't stand her face won't be allowed by this court. This attitude of throwing out women from their matrimonial homes due to certain matrimonial squabbles is cracking up families," said a vacation bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and B V Nagarathna.
However, the bench wasn't in favour of giving a authorisation right of residence to women in matrimonial homes. "If she is accused of misbehaving, then conditions are often put by court to not trouble the elders and members of the family in matrimonial homes," said Justice Nagarathna.
The case associated with an appeal filed by a girl against a Bombay state supreme court order directing her and her husband to vacate the house of her father-in-law, who had moved the tribunal for exclusive residence at his flat under Maintenance and Welfare of fogeys and Senior Citizens Act.
The tribunal had ordered her to vacate the father-in-law's flat and directed her and her husband to pay the elderly couple Rs 25,000 monthly maintenance. She had filed a writ petition challenging the tribunal's order citing her right of residence under Protection of ladies from violence Act.
The HC had ordered the elderly couple's son to produce alternative accommodation to his wife and two children but waived off the upkeep liability. She has challenged the HC order before the SC.
The bench directed listing of her petition on Thursday and directed the Registry to supply video conference links to her parents-in-law. Justice Nagarathna was vocal about the woman's right of residence in a very shared household during the hearing and cited her own judgment of May 12 pegging a milestone during this regard.
On May 12, the SC had exponentially expanded the ambit of 'shared household' under DV Act and ruled that a girl belonging to each religion, be she a mother, daughters, sisters, wife, mother-in-law, daughter-in-law or such other categories of ladies during a domestic relationship, have the proper to reside during a shared household.
Writing a 79-page judgment, Justice Nagarathna had said, "a woman during a domestic relationship who isn't aggrieved, within the sense that who has not been subjected to an act of violence, includes a right to reside during a shared household. Thus, a mother, daughter, sister, wife, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law or such other categories of girls during a domestic relationship have the proper to reside during a shared household dehors a right, title or beneficial interest within the same."
The right of residence of the aforesaid categories of ladies and such other categories of ladies in an exceedingly domestic relationship is guaranteed under Sub-Section (1) of Section 17 of the Act and she or he can't be evicted, excluded or thrown out from such a household even within the absence of there being any type of violence, the SC had said.
The bench said, "In the Indian societal context, the proper of a girl to reside within the shared household is of unique importance. the explanations for the identical aren't far to determine. In India, most girls aren't educated nor are they earning; neither do they need financial independence so on live singly."
"She could also be dependent for residence during a domestic relationship not just for emotional support except for the aforesaid reasons.... A majority of ladies in India don't have independent income or financial capacity and are totally dependent vis-à-vis their residence on their male or other female relations who may have a domestic relationship along with her," Justice Nagarathna had said.
