Mere general assertions of harassment or cruelty, without specific incidents, particulars, or role attribution, cannot attract liability under Sections 323 or 498A IPC

Whether criminal proceedings under Sections 323, 498A IPC and Sections 3 & 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act can be sustained against the brother-in-law where the FIR contains only vague, omnibus allegations without specific details of cruelty or demand of dowry.

Category: Criminal Law, Hindu Marriage Act   Posted on: September 25, 2025

Wife though qualified in law but without sufficient income is entitled to maintenance: Orissa High Court

Wife though qualified in law but without sufficient income is entitled to maintenance according to husband’s status. Mere educational qualification not bar unless adequate income proved. Husband’s remarriage constitutes just ground for wife to reside separately and claim maintenance. Major unmarried daughter entitled to maintenance till marriage under S.20(3) HAMA notwithstanding majority

Category: Hindu Marriage Act   Posted on: September 22, 2025

A civil suit seeking damages for alienation of affection (AoA) against a third party is maintainable before a Civil Court

This decision marks an important shift in Indian tort jurisprudence by affirming the maintainability of civil claims for alienation of affection, a cause of action long recognised in theory but never squarely tested in civil proceedings. While the Court has cautiously limited its ruling to the threshold of maintainability, the recognition that personal autonomy in intimate matters does not exclude civil liability for wrongful third-party interference could pave the way for an expansion of tort remedies into the marital sphere. However, concerns remain over evidentiary burdens, the quantification of damages, and the potential for such claims to be misused as collateral litigation in matrimonial disputes. The case thus opens a new, albeit contested, frontier in the intersection of family law and tort law in India.

Category: Hindu Marriage Act, Jurisprudence   Posted on: September 22, 2025

Spirit of Quranic injunctions favours monogamy; polygamy is only an exception permissible when the husband can ensure equal justice and maintenance to all wives.

The spirit of Quranic injunctions favours monogamy; polygamy is only an exception permissible when the husband can ensure equal justice and maintenance to all wives. Successive marriages by a destitute blind beggar “cannot be accepted at all, even as per Muslim customary law.”

Category: Jurisprudence   Posted on: September 20, 2025