New Delhi: Should adultery be treated as a crime or a civil offence? The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Wednesday said a national debate must settle the issue.
"It is an important issue and we have suggested to the government that a national consensus is needed on whether adultery should be treated as a civil wrong and not a crime," said NCW Chairperson Girija Vyas.
"The view that we have got from women, NGOs and activists is that adultery should be treated as a civil wrong," she said.
The Central Government had asked the Commission to review Section 497, which treats women accused of adultery as victims and doesn’t allow their husbands to prosecute them.
The commission has suggested to the Ministry of Women and Child Development that Section 497 must not be changed. "Under the present law a woman is always the victim, and we want this to be maintained," PTI quoted Vyas as saying.
Permitting punishment of women could lead to its misuse, with husbands denying alimony or maintenance to their wives on grounds of adultery.
The commission has also suggested that Section 198(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which doesn’t allow women to prosecute unfaithful husbands.
The commission says as women are empowered to sue their husbands under various other laws, stopping them from using Section 198(2) is not correct.
Comments
0 comment