A 34-year-old woman residing in Kannamwar Nagar, Vikhroli, has taken legal action by lodging a First Information Report (FIR) with the police against her husband on charges of domestic abuse. She claimed in her complaint that her husband subjected her to physical assault due to her inability to conceive a child.
Husbands taunts over infertility turned into physical attacks
After their marriage in 2018, the couple resided in Matunga Labour Camp, where they lived with his parents. Following their honeymoon in Goa, the woman alleged that her husband's behavior underwent a gradual transformation. She described him as growing suspicious whenever she received calls from colleagues or relatives, which then escalated to taunts regarding her infertility. These taunts evolved into aggressive actions and physical attacks, and she also reported her husband stalking her.
A bank employee, the woman recounted that during her visits to a gynaecologist for fertility treatment, her husband's taunts intensified. She noted that some days he even contacted her female colleagues, questioning her whereabouts. The situation worsened during the COVID-19 lockdown when her father-in-law passed away, and her husband blamed her for his demise, resulting in both physical assaults and mental anguish. She disclosed that she even sought counseling for her husband at a center in Vikhroli.
Woman alleges multiple instances of rape against her will
In August 2022, during a trip to Alibaug, she asserted that her husband harassed and humiliated her by suggesting she engage in a physical relationship with another man to conceive. Subsequently, in November 2022, she claimed her husband created a video in which he coerced her to admit to an alleged extramarital affair with a male colleague. He then uploaded this video to WhatsApp to "humiliate" her in front of her family and relatives.
Although the woman alleged multiple instances of rape against her will, the absence of marital rape laws precluded the inclusion of rape charges in the FIR. The registered FIR encompasses charges under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 498-A (husband or relative of husband subjecting a woman to cruelty), 500 (defamation), 504 (intentional insult to provoke breach of the peace), and 506 (criminal intimidation).
While the Vikhroli police have registered the husband in the case, no arrests have been made thus far. An official mentioned that a summon notice under section 41A of the CrPC would be issued to the husband to cooperate with the ongoing investigation.
