BENGALURU: Neighbours cannot be casually dragged into dowry harassment cases, Karnataka high court has held, quashing criminal proceedings against a Bengaluru woman caught in a matrimonial dispute between a couple in her neighbourhood.“A stranger cannot be drawn into the proceedings for offences under Section 498A of IPC, between the husband, wife or family members,” Justice M Nagaprasanna observed, granting relief to Asha G.The case arose from a complaint lodged on Feb 13, 2021, at Mahalakshmi Layout police station, in which Munirathnamma accused her husband, Muthuram, his family and neighbour Asha of cruelty and harassment. Police registered a case under IPC sections 498A, 504, 506 and 323 and later filed a chargesheet naming Asha as accused no. 5, alleging she had instigated Munirathnamma’s husband to torture her.Challenging the proceedings, Asha contended that she had no role whatsoever in the matrimonial life of the complainant and she was “only a neighbour”. She argued that the lone allegation of instigation was insufficient to rope her into a dowry harassment case, and that she had been arraigned as an accused because of an “axe to grind”.Munirathnamma maintained that Asha was the “reason” for her husband’s behaviour and should therefore face trial.However, Justice Nagaprasanna noted that the petitioner’s name surfaced “nowhere except for the contention that she instigated the husband to torture the wife”. The court held Asha did not fall within the definition of “family” as contemplated under Section 498A.
