A United States-based physician must stand trial in India on charges of matrimonial cruelty, the Delhi High Court has ruled, while simultaneously granting him partial relief by quashing allegations of criminal breach of trust.
Delivering the order on September 16, Justice Madhu Jain held that accusations concerning the non-return of dowry jewellery could not be sustained against the husband because the complainant never alleged handing the valuables to him. However, the bench refused to discharge the man or his relatives on allegations of domestic cruelty, finding the woman’s claims sufficiently specific to warrant scrutiny by the trial court.
Trial Court To Examine Specific Cruelty Allegations
The High Court noted that the wife’s complaint detailed consistent verbal abuse, physical and sexual assault, and significant financial demands. These alleged demands included an Innova vehicle, Rs 7 lakh handed to the petitioner’s brother, and approximately Rs 16 crore to Rs 17 crore to acquire land and establish a medical facility for the husband.
Justice Jain observed that, when considered at face value at the pre-trial quashing stage, the claims established a prima facie case of cruelty and harassment under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code. The court emphasized that determining whether the claims can be substantiated remains the exclusive jurisdiction of the trial court.
Allegations Of Criminal Breach Of Trust Dismissed
Addressing the charge of criminal breach of trust, the bench determined that the statutory prerequisites for the offence were missing in relation to the husband.
The complainant had specifically stated that her jewellery was entrusted to her sister-in-law, with no assertion that the assets subsequently transferred into the husband’s custody or control. The court affirmed that criminal proceedings may be partly quashed on an offence-by-offence basis, eliminating the breach of trust proceedings against the doctor while keeping the remaining case intact.
Foreign Annulment And Legal Background
The doctor, who has lived in the United States since 1995, wed the complainant on October 16, 2007. The couple had no children and lived apart after the wedding, as the husband returned overseas while the wife remained in India.
A spousal visa application filed on her behalf was rejected by the US Embassy in 2010. The husband subsequently sought an annulment in a Missouri state court, which dissolved the marriage in January 2015 on grounds of fraud, citing findings regarding the woman’s criminal background and her inability to enter the United States. Matrimonial proceedings initiated by the husband in a Delhi family court in 2018 were later withdrawn.
The High Court determined that neither the American annulment judgment nor records concerning visa refusals and immigration communications conclusively negated the allegations of cruelty raised in India.
Continuing Offence And Statutory Limitation
The criminal case originated in February 2019 when the woman approached the police crime against women cell, leading to a First Information Report regarding dowry demands. Following an investigation, police filed a charge sheet in April 2022 recommending trial. Court-directed mediation conducted in 2024 ended without a resolution.
Addressing contentions that the case was barred by statutory limitation because the last alleged acts of mistreatment occurred in 2012, the High Court held that Section 498A constitutes a continuing offence, where every fresh act sets a new limitation period. Justice Jain stated that limitation rules could not serve as an automatic ground to dismiss the prosecution, noting that the periods the petitioner spent outside India may need to be excluded from the statutory time calculation.
