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Friday, November 29, 2013

SC Rules That Live-In Relationship Neither Crime Nor Sin Thursday Nov 28,2013


Live-in relationship is neither a crime nor a sin, the Supreme Court has held while asking Parliament to frame law for protection of women in such relationship and children born out of it.


The SC passed the verdict on Thursday Nov 28,2013 while adjudicating dispute between a live-in couple where a lady had sought maintenance from a man after the relationship came to an end. 

The SC said unfortunately, there is no express statutory provision to regulate live-in relationships upon termination as these relationships are not in the nature of marriage and not recognised in law.

In the landmark judgement, a Bench headed by justice KS Radhakrishnan framed guidelines for bringing live-in relationship within the expression 'relationship in the nature of marriage' for protection of women from Domestic Violence Act
"Live-in or marriage like relationship is neither a crime nor a sin though socially unacceptable in this country. The decision to marry or not to marry or to have a heterosexual relationship is intensely personal," the bench said

The Bench, however, said that maintaining an adulterous relation would not come within the ambit of live-in relationship which is to be protected by law.
"Polygamy, that is a relationship or practice of having more than one wife or husband at the same time, or a relationship by way of a bigamous marriage that is marrying someone while already married to another and/or maintaining an adulterous relationship that is having voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person who is not one?s husband or wife, cannot be said to be a relationship in the nature of marriage," it said.

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