Pune: Controversy Erupts as Wakad Police Register Case Under Voided Section 497 for Adultery Despite Supreme Court Ruling
Pimpri Chinchwad, 4th January 2024: In a surprising turn of events, it has been revealed that the Wakad Police Station, under the Pimpri-Chinchwad Commissionerate, has registered a case under Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) despite its annulment by the Supreme Court. This section, which previously deemed adultery a criminal offence, was declared unconstitutional by a five-judge bench in 2018, citing its discriminatory nature.
The case was initiated after a husband filed a complaint alleging that his wife was caught engaging in a sexual relationship with her lover in a lodge in Wakad on December 28. The complainant, a businessman from Manchar in Ambegaon taluk, suspected his wife of infidelity and clandestinely followed her to the lodge. The husband, along with a friend, reportedly broke into the room and found the wife and her lover in a compromising position.
Despite the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling, which rendered Section 497 null and void, the Wakad Police registered the case under this defunct section. Legal experts have raised concerns about the implications of such an action, highlighting that no cognizable offence can be registered under a section that has been declared unconstitutional.
