Mumbai: Baseless allegations of extramarital affair is domestic violence

Mumbai: In a significant observation, a magistrate court said that making allegations of an extramarital affair against a woman without any proof is not just an emotional abuse but also a type of domestic violence.

Metropolitan Magistrate Nadeem A Patel made the remark while hearing the plea of a woman who sought monetary relief from her husband, while alleging that the man mentally harassed her and didn't contribute towards household expenses. The couple had been married for 34 years. The woman runs a small business and the man earns around Rs3.5 lakh per annum.

'Conversations don't contain the phone number of the sender': Magistrate

Accusing the applicant of having an extramarital affair, the man had also filed some chats before the court in support of his allegations.

“No lady can choose to file an application after 34 years of marriage without any reason,” the court underscored. With regards to the submitted chats, it pointed out that the conversations don't contain the phone number of the sender. So it's difficult to say that the woman texted to a third person and no other proof has been submitted apart from chats. “Therefore, in my view, the applicant is prima facie subjected to domestic violence,” said the magistrate.

The man has been ordered to pay monthly maintenance of Rs10,000 to his estranged wife.