‘Husband rolling in money’: Court ups domestic abuse victim’s compensation to Rs 1 cr from Rs 5 lakh
Mumbai, Jun 6 (PTI): A sessions court here has enhanced the compensation granted to a woman from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 1 crore in a domestic violence case, ruling that her husband was “rolling in money”.
The court observed that the woman’s husband, who runs an elevator company, and his family are “crorepatis”.
Besides the compensation, the court also increased the monthly maintenance granted to the woman and her daughter from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh, holding that the “physical and mental torture” faced by the complainant while living with her husband can “scarcely be imagined”.
In her order passed last month, Additional Sessions Judge (Dindoshi Court) S J Ansari ruled that the initial compensation of Rs 5 lakh awarded by a magistrate was “meagre” considering that the woman endured “torture and humiliation” for 20 years.
The victim, a 41-year-old housewife, had challenged a February 2020 compensation order passed by the magistrate under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act.
She alleged a long history of physical, emotional, and economic abuse by her husband and in-laws since her marriage in December 1997.
The sessions court noted that the woman was forced to seek legal help for maintenance as a last resort after suffering "beatings, severe assaults, taunts and even financial deprivation" in a marriage of almost 20 years.
The “physical and mental torture” endured by the woman while living with her husband can “scarcely be imagined”, the court said.
The sessions judge also noted that the magistrate had granted Rs 5 lakh to the aggrieved woman. According to the order, while the woman termed the amount too little, her husband contended that she was not entitled to any money as compensation.
The man claimed that he was at the receiving end of his wife’s “behaviour” and his financial situation had now become “precarious”. The husband said he pays the rent for the premises occupied by him and their twin sons, and he takes care of their educational and living expenses, which leaves him with nothing.
The court, however, held that the complainant was subjected to domestic violence by her husband.
It noted that the husband and his father had the financial capacity in 2012 to purchase land as well as a flat worth more than Rs 1 crore.
The man could not prove that his financial condition was not good despite trying his level best, the court said.
“On the other hand, he being in a position to purchase properties worth Rs 1 crore in 2012, and presently running an elevator company, will surely be rolling in money,” the court said.
Citing the material on the record, the court said the man and his family are “crorepatis”. Noting that he being “extremely rich”, the Rs 5 lakh compensation awarded to the complainant by the magistrate “is too meagre an amount”.
“The same requires a very substantial enhancement so as to actually compensate the complainant for the 20 years of torture, humiliation, economic abuse, taunts, etc., undergone by her at the hands of the respondent no. 1,” the court ruled.
The court said the woman has to now also suffer being estranged from her two sons. The husband appears to have influenced the sons against their mother “is also something which cannot be ignored”, the judge said.
After considering all aspects, the court raised the compensation as well as the maintenance granted to the woman and her daughter.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
