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Constitutionality of Section 497 of Indian Penal Code

 

JOSEPH SHINE V UNION OF INDIA


Petitioner: Joseph Shine


Respondent: Union of India


Bench:  Chief Justice Dipak Mishra, Justice Khanwilkar, Justice R.F.Nariman, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud,  Justice Indu Malhotra


Analysis of the case

Joseph Shine a hotelier filed a writ petition under Article 32 challenging the constitutionality of section 497 IPC read with sections 14,15,21 of the Constitution. The major reason for this petition was to protect Indian males from being punished for extramarital affairs by women or their husbands.

A powerful example of sexual injustice, authoritative imperialism, and patriotic masculinity is section 497 IPC.


Issues Raised

  • Whether the section 497 of IPC is unconstitutional?

  • Whether section 497 IPC read with section 198 of the Crpc is the infringement of Articles 14,15,21 of the Constitution.

  • Whether Section 497 should be made gender-neutral by including women as offenders?


Judgement

The judgment was given by the Chief Justice of India starting with the statement ‘proving that wives are not the property of the husbands and husbands are not their masters’. Such a magnificent, compassionate, and monumental document embodies emphatic inclusiveness which has been further nurtured by judicial sensitivity when it has developed the concept of a golden triangle of fundamental rights.

According to the ruling, section 497 is outdated and unconstitutional because it deprives women of their freedom, dignity, and privacy as it violates Articles 14,15, and 21 of the Indian Constitution and determined that Section 198(2) of the CRPC was constitutional. This decision overturned several earlier rulings that had upheld the criminalization of adultery.

Chief Justice Dipak Mishra said that ‘The beauty of the Constitution is that it includes I, Me, and You.

There were various times before the question has been arisen on the constitutionality of section 497 IPC. In the case of Yusuf Abdul Aziz v State of Bombay, the 3 judges' bench upheld the validity of the said provision as it is a special provision created for women and is saved by Article 15(3) and Article 14 of the Constitution is gender is just classification, so by combining both it is valid.

Justice Indu Malhotra said that the provision of Adultery is the violation of fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Constitution laid down in the case of Justice K.S.Puttaswamy and another v Union of India, In this case, Supreme Court held that the Right to Privacy was a fundamental right derived from  Article 21. This right is subject to reasonable restrictions.

It was pointed out by the court that the nature of Section 497 IPC is arbitrary.
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