Not making tea no provocation for husband to assault wife: High Court
Mumbai: Upholding a 35-year-old man's conviction for assaulting his wife, the Bombay High Court has said the wife's refusal to make tea for husband could not be accepted as provocation for him to assault her, and observed that wife is "not a chattel or an object".
In an order passed earlier this month, Justice Revati Mohite Dere said "marriage, ideally, is a partnership based on equality".
But, notions of patriarchy and the idea that the woman is a man's property still prevail in society, leading a man to think that his wife is his "chattel", the court observed.
The HC also said the testimony of the couple's 6-year- old daughter inspires confidence and cannot be disbelieved.
The court upheld the conviction and 10 years' imprisonment awarded to Santosh Atkar (35), a resident of Pandharpur in Solapur district, by a local court in 2016.
He was found guilty on the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
As per the order, Atkar and his wife had been having disputes since some time. On the day of the incident in December 2013, his wife insisted on going out without making a cup of tea for him.
The man then struck her with a hammer, injuring her grievously.
As per the case details and testimony of the couple's daughter, Atkar then cleaned the spot of the crime, gave his wife a bath and took her to hospital.
She succumbed to her injuries after being in the hospital for about a week.
The defence argued that Atkar had been provoked into committing the crime because his wife refused to make tea.
The HC, however, rejected the argument and held that there existed adequate evidence, including testimony of the man's daughter, to prove the charges against him.
"The deceased, by refusing to make tea for the appellant (Atkar), by no stretch of imagination, can be said to have offered grave and sudden provocation for the appellant to assault her, much less, such a brutal assault," it said.
"It would not be out of place to observe that a wife is not a chattel or an object," the HC said.
Such cases reflect the imbalance of gender and skewed patriarchy, the socio-cultural milieu one has grown up in, which often seeps into a marital relationship, it said.
The court said an imbalance of gender roles exists in society, where the wife is expected to do all the household chores.
"Emotionallabour in a marriage is also expected to be done by the wife. Coupled with these imbalances in the equation, is the imbalance of expectation and subjugation," Justice Mohite Dere said.
Social conditions of women also make them handover themselves to their spouses, she said.
"Thus, men, in such cases, consider themselves as primary partners and their wives, chattel," the judge said.
She said it is unfortunate that such"medieval notion" of wife being the husband's property still exists, and the wife is expected to do what her husband wished her to do.
"Thus, the submission of the learned counsel for the appellant that the deceased by refusing to make tea for the appellant offered grave and sudden provocation, is ludicrous, clearly untenable and unsustainable and as such deserves to be rejected," the HC said while dismissing the man's appeal against his conviction and sentence.
The defence also raised questions on the testimony of the couple's daughter, saying it was recorded after a delay of some days and it could not be believed.
But, the high court rejected the argument and said, "Her testimony inspires confidence and cannot be disbelieved.
There is nothing in the cross-examination of this witness to disbelieve her presence in the house at the relevant time."
She (the daughter) is a natural witness, who woke up on hearing the quarrel between her parents and witnessed the assault on her mother by her father, and saw her father clean the spot soon thereafter, the court added.
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AAP indulging in 'dangerous vendetta politics': Raghav Chadha after meeting President Murmu
New Delhi (PTI): Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha on Tuesday accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Punjab government of indulging in 'vendetta politics' and misusing the state machinery to target the MPs who recently quit the party and merged with the BJP in the Rajya Sabha.
Chadha, along with three other MPs, met President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday and submitted a representation alleging harassment and "politically motivated" action against them following their exit from AAP.
Rajya Sabha MPs Rajinder Gupta and Ashok Mittal were part of the delegation.
"All those MPs who exercised their constitutional right to express disagreement with the Aam Aadmi Party and chose to leave it, and all these incidents and developments, have been presented today before the President of India. I also want to tell the Aam Aadmi Party that as long as we were obedient, we were considered cultured. The moment we left, we were branded corrupt," Chadha told reporters here after the meeting.
He alleged that several former AAP MPs who have joined the BJP are facing intimidation and coercive actions from state agencies.
"The Aam Aadmi Party, which accuses everyone else of revenge politics, is today itself indulging in dangerous vendetta politics. Since April 24, when we left AAP and merged with the BJP, our MPs are being systematically targeted and harassed," he said.
Citing specific instances, Chadha claimed that former cricketer and MP Harbhajan Singh has been attacked, while industrialist and MP Rajendra Gupta's business operations have allegedly been disrupted.
"We left the Aam Aadmi Party on April 24, 2026, and merged with the BJP. Since then, harassment of our MPs has begun. First, World Cup-winning cricketer Harbhajan Singh had "traitor" written outside his house. Stones were thrown at his residence with the help of Punjab Police, and offensive slogans were raised targeting his family," he alleged.
"Then, our colleague Rajinder Gupta, a Padma Shri awardee and an industrialist running a major factory in Punjab's Malwa region--providing livelihood to around 30,000 people--had his factory targeted. The Punjab government allegedly cut off its water supply, and the Pollution Board conducted raids to initiate its closure," he said.
He further claimed that cases have been registered against MP Sandeep Pathak, terming them "malicious and fabricated".
"These FIRs and notices are so frivolous that they are not worth the paper they are written on. The judiciary will tear them apart," Chadha said.
He warned the AAP government that such actions could have serious consequences. "Using vigilance, the Pollution Board, and the police for political revenge is a dangerous game. You may have started it, but the end will not be good. This must stop," he said.
"The AAP has a government in one state and control over the police there. The BJP has governments in 21 states and control over police forces in those states," he added.
Chadha also alleged that attempts are being made to target him next through "fabricated cases" and claimed that social media campaigns are being run to malign them.
Appealing to Punjab government officials, he urged them not to act under political pressure. "I want to tell officials that you are respected officers. Do not succumb to threats of transfer or suspension. Act according to law and in national interest," he said.
The Rajya Sabha MP also took a swipe at the AAP, saying those who invoke Mahatma Gandhi's ideals are now misusing state machinery for political purposes. "The people of Punjab must know how their government is being used to settle political scores," Chadha added.
Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak alleged that the party is now resorting to coercive measures out of "fear and panic".
"We joined the Aam Aadmi Party because it showed the country a dream -- a dream of starting a new kind of politics, an honest form of politics. While being there, due to ideological reasons and after witnessing several inconsistencies, we decided to leave the party," he said.
"Out of fear and panic, the Aam Aadmi Party is now filing FIRs. They are conducting raids in factories and trying to intimidate people through false FIRs. I want to say 'go ahead, file FIRs', but do not back off afterwards. We will fight legally," he told reporters.
Advising the AAP government, Pathak asserted that governance, not intimidation, is the only way forward.
"You cannot save a government through such dirty tactics. If you want to retain power, you must work honestly. If you think you can stop us through false and fabricated FIRs, that is not possible. We have stepped out ready to sacrifice everything and will do what is right for the country," he said.
Pathak mentioned that the President assured them that constitutional protections would be upheld.
Taking a swipe at the ruling party, Chadha said its tenure in Punjab is now short-lived. "This government has only a few months left; it will go. They will simply board the Shatabdi and return to Delhi. They have no future in Punjab," he said.
Later, in a post on X, Chadha said that he, along with three other MPs, conveyed to the President how the AAP's Punjab government is misusing state machinery to target them for exercising their constitutional rights.
"The party that once cried vendetta is now practising its most toxic form," he wrote.
"We take strength from the President's assurance that constitutional rights and democratic choices must be respected," he added, while likening the AAP's conduct to that of a "bitter and vindictive" former ally.
