Cruelty Law — Who Counts as a 'Relative' · 27 August 2026

A Husband's Girlfriend Cannot Be Prosecuted as His 'Relative' Under Section 85 BNS, Calcutta High Court Holds

High Court at Calcutta · CRR 5550 of 2025

A woman alleged prolonged physical and mental torture by her husband, and separately alleged that he was in an extra-marital relationship with another woman, Purba Chatterjee, and that Chatterjee and three others had acted together with him to intimidate her, extort money, and force her out of the matrimonial home. An FIR was registered against the husband and the four co-accused under Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (the successor to Section 498A IPC) along with other provisions. Chatterjee and the three others sought quashing of the case against themselves.

The Calcutta High Court quashed the proceedings against the four co-accused, holding that Section 85 BNS/498A IPC applies only to a husband or his relatives, and — relying on the Supreme Court's ruling in U. Suvetha v. State — that a girlfriend or associate of the husband cannot be treated as his 'relative' for this purpose, regardless of the allegations against her. The Court found the FIR also failed to set out any specific role for each co-accused individually. The quashing was confined to these four; it did not concern, or absolve, the husband, against whom the wife's core allegations of the affair and joint harassment remained separately on record.

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