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    Domestic Violence Act 2005

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    Prvn Kumar
    The document summarizes India's Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act of 2005. It defines domestic violence and outlines the types of abuse covered by the law. The law protects women in domestic relationships, including wives, mothers, sisters and partners. It allows complaints of domestic violence to be filed with the police, protection officers, or directly with a magistrate. The magistrate is empowered to issue protection orders, grant relief such as custody and monetary compensation, and punish breaches of their orders. However, some studies have shown that a small portion of cases filed under the law have been found to be misused by some women.

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    Domestic Violence Act 2005

    Uploaded by

    Prvn Kumar
    45 views5 pages
    The document summarizes India's Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act of 2005. It defines domestic violence and outlines the types of abuse covered by the law. The law protects women in domestic relationships, including wives, mothers, sisters and partners. It allows complaints of domestic violence to be filed with the police, protection officers, or directly with a magistrate. The magistrate is empowered to issue protection orders, grant relief such as custody and monetary compensation, and punish breaches of their orders. However, some studies have shown that a small portion of cases filed under the law have been found to be misused by some women.

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    The document summarizes India's Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act of 2005. It defines domestic violence and outlines the types of abuse covered by the law. The law protects women in domestic relationships, including wives, mothers, sisters and partners. It allows complaints of domestic violence to be filed with the police, protection officers, or directly with a magistrate. The magistrate is empowered to issue protection orders, grant relief such as custody and monetary compensation, and punish breaches of their orders. However, some studies have shown that a small portion of cases filed under the law have been found to be misused by some women.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    45 views5 pages

    Domestic Violence Act 2005

    Uploaded by

    Prvn Kumar
    The document summarizes India's Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act of 2005. It defines domestic violence and outlines the types of abuse covered by the law. The law protects women in domestic relationships, including wives, mothers, sisters and partners. It allows complaints of domestic violence to be filed with the police, protection officers, or directly with a magistrate. The magistrate is empowered to issue protection orders, grant relief such as custody and monetary compensation, and punish breaches of their orders. However, some studies have shown that a small portion of cases filed under the law have been found to be misused by some women.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 5

    The Protection of Women from

    Domestic Violence Act 2005


    Domestic violence is the most disguised type of crime and it needs very strong
    legislation, awareness, counseling and participation to remove this crime from society.
    This type of crimes are mostly done against women and children and it requires many
    clear cut dimensions and clarification to define what constitutes domestic violence.
    Domestic violence is a very sensitive issue as it is directly related to the individual
    relations of the person and hence it requires very clear cut clarification to define the law
    precisely.

    Definition of domestic violence.—

    Any act or conduct of the respondent (woman's husband or any other family members
    etc.) shall constitute domestic violence if it involves the following against the aggrieved
    woman :-
    ● Causing hurt, injury or danger to life, health, safety or well-being, whether mental
    or physical.
    ● Causing harm, injury, or danger to the woman with an intention to coerce her or any
    other person related to her to meet any demand for dowry.
    ● “Physical abuse" includes hurt of any kind. Assault, criminal intimidation and
    criminal force.
    ● “Sexual abuse" or any other act of sexual nature, abusing, humiliating, degrading or
    violative of one’s dignity.
    ● “Verbal and emotional abuse" such as Accusation/aspersion on character or
    conduct. Insult for not bringing dowry, Insult for not having a male child. etc.
    Forcing to not attend school, college or any other educational institution, preventing
    one from taking up a job etc.
    ● "Economic abuse" such as not providing money for maintaining a woman or her
    children Not providing food, clothes, medicine. etc, Forcing women out of the
    house. Preventing from accessing or using any part of the house, preventing or
    obstructing one from carrying on employment. Non-payment of rent in case of a
    rented accommodation, selling or mortgaging stridhan or any other valuables
    without informing and without consent. Forcibly taking away salary, income or
    wages etc. Non-payment of other bills such as electricity, etc.

    Persons covered under the Act

    ● The Act covers all women who may be mother, sister, wife, widow or partners living
    in a shared household. The relationship may be in the nature of marriage or
    adoption.
    ● In addition relationships with family members living together as a joint family are
    also included.
    ● However, no female relative of the husband or the male partner can file a complaint
    against the wife or the female partner, for e.g. the mother-in-law cannot file an
    application against a daughter-in-law, but she can file an application against her
    daughter-in-law for abetting her son to commit violence against her.

    The complained can be filed by


    ● Any woman who alleges to have been subjected to any act of domestic violence by
    the offender or any person may file a complaint on her behalf
    ● A child is also entitled to relief under the Domestic Violence Act. The mother of such
    a child can make an application on behalf of her minor child (whether male or
    female). In cases where the mother makes an application to the court for herself, the
    children can also be added as co-applicants.

    The complaint be filed against


    ● Any adult male member who has been in a domestic relationship with the woman
    ● Relatives of the husband or the male partner
    ● Includes both male and female relatives of the male partner
    ● However, no female relative of the husband or the male partner can file a complaint
    against the wife or the female partner, for e.g. the mother-in-law cannot file an
    application against a daughter-in-law, but she can file an application against her
    daughter-in-law for abetting her son to commit violence against her.
    Important terms
    ● Domestic relationship- Relationship between two persons who live or have at any
    point of time lived together in a shared household. It Includes relationship of kinship,
    marriage, relationship in the nature of marriage.
    ● Shared household is a household where the woman lives or has lived with the man
    in a domestic relationship. She may not be living in the shared household at the time
    of the application for relief but such women are entitled to relief under the Domestic
    Violence Act as long as the domestic relationship subsists. Every woman in a
    domestic relationship has the right to reside in the shared household, even if she
    does not have any right, title or interest in it.

    To whom can the complaint be made?


    ● Information may be given and a complaint can be made to a police officer/Protection
    Officer/Service provider (an NGO) or Magistrate.

    Provision for shelter home and Medical Aid


    ● An aggrieved person or on her behalf a Protection Officer or service provider (any
    voluntary association working to protect the rights and interests of women) can
    request a person in charge of a shelter home or a medical facility to provide shelter
    or medical aid to her. “Protection Officer” means an officer appointed by the State
    Government in each district as it may be considered necessary.

    Who may file an application to the magistrate?


    ● An aggrieved person or
    ● A Protection Officer or
    ● Any other person on behalf of the aggrieved person may present an application to
    the magistrate
    ● It is the duty of the protection officer and the service provider to provide all
    assistance to the woman who is a victim of domestic violence.

    Powers of the Magistrate under the Act


    The Magistrate may –
    1. Direct the respondent or the aggrieved person, either singly or jointly, to undergo
    counseling.
    2. Direct that the woman shall not be evicted or excluded from the household or any
    part of it.
    3. If considered necessary, the proceedings may be directed to be conducted in camera.
    4. Issue Protection order, providing protection to the woman.
    5. Grant monetary relief to meet the expenses incurred and losses suffered by the
    aggrieved person and any child of the aggrieved person as a result of the domestic
    violence.
    6. Grant custody orders, i.e., temporary custody of any child or children to the
    aggrieved person.
    7. Grant compensation/damages for the injuries. Including mental torture and
    emotional distress caused by the acts of domestic violence committed by that
    respondent.
    8. Breach of any order of the Magistrate is an offence which is punishable under the
    taw.
    ● The Act is in addition to existing laws
    ● Aggrieved person has the right to file a complaint simultaneously under Section 498A
    JPC
    ● Reliefs under the Domestic Violence Act can also be asked for in other legal
    proceedings e.g. petition for divorce, maintenance, Section 498A IPC, etc

    Misuse of the act


    There are numbers of cases which prove that there is a misuse of the Domestic Violence Act:

    1. In the case of Major Singh & Anr. v. Sarabjit Kaur 2018, the wife filed a false
    complaint against her husband because she was having an extramarital affair. She
    tried to threaten her husband but her husband filed for divorce. The judgment
    passed by the Punjab High Court was that Protection of Women from Domestic
    Violence Act is being misused to terrorize the spouse, their families and distant
    relatives and this phenomenon has now acquired the name of ‘legal terrorism'.
    2. In the case of Smt. Geetanjali v. Sri B.B. Anantha 2018, the wife filed a false
    complaint against her husband to acquire property from him. The facts of the
    case show that the wife was tortured by her husband she didn't get proper
    treatment but after the investigation, it was found that the case is a false and
    Metropolitan Magistrate, Bangalore passed the judgment by stating that, it is
    noted that testimony of the complainant woman throws light on the conduct of
    the complainant and the extent, to which she has falsified and concocted various
    allegations and has suppressed important facts in order to harass her husband
    and parents-in-law and had misused the Protection of Women from Domestic
    Violence Act 2005 as a tool to extort unjustified money from her husband for
    unjustified for personal gain.
    3. The then MoS (Home) Kiren Rijiju in 2016, answering a question on cases of
    domestic violence in the country, said that only 13 persons were convicted out of
    the 639 chargesheeted in 2014 under the Protection of Women from Domestic
    Violence Act 2005.

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