The Supreme Court on Friday came down heavily on a man for launching his separated wife and minor daughters from their marital home, equating their behavior with that of an animal. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh criticized the man, saying, “What kind of man are you if you don’t even care about your minor daughters? What wrong have they done by coming into this world?”
Visibly irked, the bench added, “I was only interested in having several children. We cannot allow such a cruel man to enter our court. Goddess Saraswati and Lakshmi all day, and then they do such things).”
Angry over the details of the case, the court required the man to pay maintenance or transfer agricultural land to his estranged wife and daughters before it would consider passing any favorable orders. “What is the difference between an animal and a man who does not take care of his minor daughters?” The bank commented, according to news agency PTI.
The man, a resident of Jharkhand, was convicted in 2015 for torturing and harassing his wife over dowry demands, under section 498A of the IPC. He was accused of fraudulently withdrawing into his wife’s womb, abandoning her and their daughters, and marrying another woman.
The case, registered in 2009, led to his conviction, with a sentence of 2.5 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹5,000. He served 11 months of custody. In 2024, the Jharkhand High Court reduced his sentence to 1.5 years but increased the fine to ₹1 lakh.
The couple got married in 2003, but the wife was reportedly tortured and expelled after just four months due to an unmet dowry demand of ₹50,000. Despite several Panchayat meetings, the man refused to reconcile. In June 2009, he allegedly remarried and kicked his wife and daughters out of the house.
While the High Court noted that there was insufficient evidence to prove the removal of the wife’s uterus or remarriage, the Supreme Court insisted that the man pay for the maintenance of his wife and daughters, warning that the case would not proceed until that he did it. The hearing was postponed to February 14.
