The Madras High Court has said that the second wife, who is unaware of the husband’s first marriage, cannot be prosecuted for bigamy. The court also said that such a woman will not be considered a relative of the husband. Therefore, there will be no case of cruelty against him under Section 85 of BNS. The petitioner woman said that at the time of marriage she was not aware of her husband’s first marriage. The husband had hidden this thing from her. The woman said that she was cheated in this case and was not involved in the crime. Justice N Ramesh heard the case of Rajalakshmi vs The State on Tuesday and delivered the verdict. The woman had applied for anticipatory bail to avoid arrest. This matter was related to the case registered in the All Women Police Station. The case was registered on the complaint of the first wife. The court said – The second wife has neither blood relation nor kinship. The court said that Section 85 of BNS is in line with Section 498A of IPC. This section applies to cruelty inflicted on a victim by her husband or husband’s relative. This provision generally does not apply to every person. This is limited to the husband and his relatives. Kinship is usually formed by blood, marriage or adoption. The court said that the second wife who was not aware of the husband’s first marriage cannot be considered a relative of the husband. In such a situation, the husband cheated both the women. Therefore, both the women cannot be considered accused and victims. The court also cited the Calcutta High Court case Sagari Hembram vs. State of West Bengal & Anr. The Calcutta High Court had said that Section 494 of the IPC applies to a person who marries a second time while still in a valid marriage. This section does not apply to a person who marries a second person. Madras High Court said that the same logic applies to Section 85 of BNS also. Commenting on the provision of bigamy, the court said that Section 82 of BNS contains the same provisions which were in Sections 494 and 495 of the Indian Penal Code i.e. IPC. Under this, a person can be punished who marries the first and then marries the second while the spouse is alive. The court said that if the accused husband hides the fact of his first marriage, then the punishment under this provision increases. That is, the accused of bigamy is the same person whose spouse is already alive. The court also said that the second wife cannot be dragged into the case as there is no evidence to show her knowledge or involvement. Anticipatory bail granted to second wife: The court said that the petitioner in this case is not a criminal. Nor is it necessary to interrogate him in custody. However, the claim of lack of information should be investigated. On the case of cruelty, the court said that the woman is not a relative of the husband. She also got cheated by her husband. In view of these things, the court decided to grant bail with certain conditions.
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मद्रास हाईकोर्ट बोला-पहली शादी से अनजान दूसरी पत्नी आरोपी नहीं: लेकिन उसे पति का रिश्तेदार भी नहीं मान सकते
