GAUHATI HIGH COURT ISSUES ORDER FOR SMTI PALLAVI SARMAH AND ANR V/S THE STATE OF ASSAM

GUWAHATI, India, Sept. 17 -- Gauhati High Court issued the following order on Aog. 19:

1. This criminal petition under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita [BNSS], 2023 is preferred by two petitioners seeking setting aside and quashing of the proceedings of Police Report Case [PRC] no. 638/2023, presently pending before the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup [M], Guwahati.

2. The facts stated by the petitioners in this petition can be narrated, briefly, at first.

3. The marriage between the petitioner no. 1 and the petitioner no. 2 was solemnized on 25.04.2019 as per Hindu rites, rituals and customs at Guwahati in presence of family members, friends, relatives and well-wishers. The marriage was subsequently registered on 03.06.2019 before the Marriage Officer, Kamrup [Metro] under the provisions of the Special Marriage Act. After solemnization of the marriage, the parties started to live together at Guwahati. However, disputes and discords started arising between them and as a result, the petitioner no. 1 had left her matrimonial home on 01.03.2023.

4. On 23.03.2023, the petitioner no. 1 lodged a First Information Report [FIR] before the Officer In-Charge, All Women Police Station, Panbazar alleging cruelty upon her by her husband, that is, the petitioner no. 2 and the said FIR was registered as All Women Police Station Case no. 18/2023 for the offence under Section 498A, Indian Penal Code [IPC]. The case was investigated into. After completing investigation into the case, All women Police Station Case no. 18/2023, the Investigating Officer [I.O.] of the case laid a charge-sheet under Section 173[2], CrPC vide Charge-Sheet no. 17/2023 on 25.04.2023 finding a prima facie case against the petitioner no. 2. On submission of the chargesheet, the case has been registered as PRC no. 638/2023 and the proceedings started before the Court of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup [M] at Guwahati ['the Trial Court', for short].

4.1. In the interregnum, the petitioner no. 1 instituted a case, F.C.[Civil] Case no. 125/2024 against the petitioner no. 2 under Section 13[1][ia] of the Hindu Marriage Act seeking dissolution of her marriage with the petitioner no. 2 by a decree of divorce on the ground of cruelty. It is further stated that the petitioner no. 1 also filed an application before the Court of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup [M] at Guwahati under Section 12 of the Domestic Violence Act and the said case has been registered as Domestic Violence Case no. 70/2023.

4.2. When those proceedings were going on, efforts including counseling, were made to resolve the marital disputes and discords between the parties. But, all such efforts did not materialize into restitution of the conjugal life of the parties. The petitioners had realized that for reasons of incompatibility and the irreconcilable differences and discords existing between them, the best possible way is to proceed for a voluntary and mutual divorce. The petitioners therefore, decided to seek for dissolution of their marital relationship through a decree of mutual divorce. For that purpose, they entered into a Deed of Agreement on 04.08.2025 setting forth the terms and conditions for their mutual and voluntary divorce.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=A9S7c5LDIsB6RXaCf816xw%2BtkXUQBL2zubzn%2FECuT91mWlEkYczGSNVezuRCe3lu&caseno=Crl.Pet./1003/2025&cCode=1&cino=GAHC010182922025&state_code=6&appFlag=)

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