Does Domestic Violence Act Protect Men From Abusive Wife? Here’s What Indian Laws Say | EXPLAINED

New Delhi: Women’s safety has always been a critical issue worldwide, with numerous cases of violence against women reported daily. However, incidents of domestic violence, harassment, and abuse against men have also been reported. In India, multiple cases of abuse against men have been reported in the recent past, some of them have also forced the men to commit suicide.

While strict laws are in place to protect women from violence, there are no equivalent laws to safeguard men from abusive wives. Here’s what the Indian laws have to say about this…

Also Read: 'Mummy Bachaao': Satna Man Records Disturbing Domestic Violence as Wife Strangles and Beats Him, Pleads for Help

Constitution of India Guarantees Equality Before Law, Protection of Life and Personal Liberty

According to Article 14 of the Constitution of India, all Indians are equal before the law, irrespective of their background and status and “the State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India”. 

Its ambit was further widened with Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, i.e. ‘Protection of Life and Personal Liberty', according to which, “no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law”.

Furthermore, in the landmark judgement of Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India in 1978, the Supreme Court widened the interpretation of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, ruling that “procedure established by law” must be fair and not arbitrary. The court held that “the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 is not limited to mere animal existence but includes the right to live with dignity”.

What is Domestic Violence As Per Domestic Violence Act

According to the Domestic Violence Act, officially known as the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, defines the term ‘domestic violence’ as “physical, mental, verbal, emotional, sexual and economic abuse; harassment for dowry and acts of threatening to abuse the victim or any other person related to her”. The act includes different forms of abuse that are faced by a woman. 

Does Domestic Violence Act Protect Men From Abusive Wife? 

As the name suggests, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, is specifically directed to the abuse faced by women in their relationships, and no particular section of the Act guarantees protection to men from their abusive wives. However, court rulings in the past have set precedents to protect men in cases of abuse and domestic violence from their wives. 

• After the rulings in the Hiral P. Harsora And Ors. v. Kusum Narottamdas of 2007, the Mohammed Zakir v. Shabana case of 2017 and Kanav Gupta v. Neha Gupta of 2022, the husband can also bring a claim against his wife and file a suit under Section 12 of the Domestic Violence Act. 

The Section 12(1) of the Domestic Violence Act says, “An aggrieved person or a Protection Officer or any other person on behalf of the aggrieved person may present an application to the Magistrate seeking one or more reliefs under this Act provided that before passing any order on such application, the Magistrate shall take into consideration any domestic incident report received by him from the Protection Officer or the service provider."

• The Supreme Court's ruling in the Hiralal P. Harsora v. Kusum Narottamdaas Harsora case of 2016, is also in favour of men who face domestic violence by their wives. The top court struck down a part of Section 2(q) of the Domestic Violence Act, calling it a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. 

In the ruling, the Supreme Court ordered the deletion of the phrase ‘adult male’ from the Act, replacing it with ‘any person’, i.e., a man or woman, anybody will be able to use the provisions of the Domestic Violence Act. Earlier, the Section 2(q) of the Act read, “As per Section 2(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 relief under the 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.”

Apart from the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961; Sections 80, 85, 86 of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Section 144 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) also ensure protection to women against different acts of violence and crime. However, there are no such laws for men's protection from their abusive wives. 

A disturbing video from Satna, Madhya Pradesh has surfaced on the internet in which, a woman is mercilessly beating her husband and has also tried to strangle him; the male victim is seen crying for help as he records the domestic violence on camera. With a shocking rise in such cases of harassment, domestic violence and torture on men by women, there is also a need to ensure that the women who misuse their rights and protections, are punished and safety of both men and women is ensured.