Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Not taken to honeymoon wife files 498a dowry harassment on husband and inlaws

Not taken to honeymoon wife files 498a dowry harassment on husband and inlaws

A 30-year-old doctor has registered a dowry and mental harassment case against her husband after living with him for just 10 days post marriage. However, in a private complaint filed in court, her husband has sought judicial separation from her, alleging she did not co-operate on matrimonial obligations.

Dr Nalini G, a resident of HRBR Layout, has filed a complaint with the Banasawadi police alleging that her husband and his family members harassed her for her “boring lifestyle”. They wanted her to be more modern and wear short skirts and crop her hair, she said. This was not acceptable to her, she said. “My mother-in-law would force me to cut my hair short and adopt a modern lifestyle. She even forcibly took me to the beauty parlour to shorten my hair, but I refused,” she said. She alleged that her brother-in-law would make her watch English channels and ask her to dress up in short clothes and western outfits.

Dr Nalini said her husband would not allow her to sleep before he slept, and his mother would not allow him to enter the bedroom before 1 am. “After coming to the room, he would use me physically and later make me sleep on the floor. The family members used to spend a lot of time consuming alcohol and would force me also to consume it,” she said.

“My husband hasn’t even taken me on a honeymoon. When I would talk about it, he would say he wouldn’t go without his parents.” She has also accused the family of demanding dowry.

“Soon after our engagement on December 6 last year, my in-laws had started demanding a vehicle, cash and gold. They had even threatened to call off the engagement, if their demands were not met. As I am the only daughter, my parents took a lot of loans and ensured that all the demands were met. But, lately, my in-laws have started demanding a share of my father’s property. Once, during an argument over this in my clinic, my husband manhandled me in front of my patients. The Hoysala police saw it and came to enquire what the matter was. But I sent them away saying it was a family issue.”

Dr Nalini said her in-laws had sent her to parents for the traditional ritual during Ashada Masa in July (when wife stays away from husband). But they did come to take her back after the end of Ashada Masa. “They refuse to pick my call. I was left with no option but to register a case.”

However, her husband A Dilip Kumar, an engineer, had a different story to tell. In a private complaint registered by his advocate in court, Dilip has sought judicial separation from Dr Nalini. “My wife, Dr Nalini, did not cooperate on matrimonial obligations and stayed with us for just 10 days after our wedding in April,” he alleged in his complaint. Dilip has not mentioned anything about dowry. Dr Nalini has submitted the list of the gold ornaments and also the bills for the car her father had bought to be given as dowry.

“Dilip’s family members have been absconding since the complaint was lodged,” Banaswadi police inspector NB Sakri said. “Even their telephones are switched off and there is no progress in the case yet.”

http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_husband-in-laws-want-doctor-in-bangalore-to-be-modern-harass-her_1435095

Delhi high court says corrupt central servants can be punished after retirement

Delhi high court says corrupt central servants can be punished after retirement

8 sep 2010

Sending out a clear message to the corrupt, the Delhi high court (HC) ruled on Tuesday that tainted government officials cannot escape punishment even after retirement.

HC said corruption should be accountable at all stages and officials involved should face the consequences.

A division bench of justices Pradeep Nandrajog and MC Garg upheld the Centre’s decision to deduct 50% of pension of HL Gulati, who retired as a senior accounts officer in the ministry of defence.

“The charges proved against the respondent [Gulati] go to show that his conduct tantamounts to unlawful behavior by a public servant in relation to his duties willfully. Thus, he is certainly guilty of committing misconduct in office. Looking at the amount involved, it can certainly be said to be a case of grave misconduct,” the judges said.

HC was hearing the Centre’s plea against a central administrative tribunal order quashing its decision of deducting Gulati’s pension. “The order passed by the tribunal is not sustainable in law,” HC said.

Gulati authorised payment against 36 fraudulent claims to the tune of Rs42.24 lakh approximately, Jyoti Singh, counsel for the government, argued.

“Acts of moral turpitude, of dishonesty, bribery and corruption would obviously be an aggravated form of misconduct, not only because of their morally depraving nature but even the reason that they would be attracting penal laws. Failure to maintain devotion to duty would be like fireman sleeping in the fire office and not responding to an emergency call, ultimately resulting in the death of 10 persons,” HC observed.

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_delhi-high-court-says-corrupt-central-servants-can-be-punished-after-retirement_1435008

Delhi HC gives infant's custody to mother

Delhi HC gives infant's custody to mother

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Tuesday handed over custody of an infant girl to her mother and sent her matrimonial dispute to the mediation centre.
A division bench asked the father of the girl who had forcibly taken her custody from the mother to surrender the child to her mother and sort out their dispute via mediation.
The father had appeared with the girl in response to HC summons and argued against handing her over to his wife, saying he had a greater right on the child and was apprehensive the mother would not be able to nurture the baby properly.
However, the bench disagreed and pointed out that at such a young age, the mother had the first right on the child and she can't be deprived of it.
HC was hearing a habeas corpus filed by the mother who alleged she was victimized by her husband who took away their daughter. Fearing the baby might be in danger, the mother moved HC seeking her presence. She alleged that on a pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi shrine earlier this year, her husband had discarded her and taken away the child.
HC had then asked the SHO of the concerned police station to trace the father and the child and produce them before it.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/HC-gives-infants-custody-to-mother/articleshow/6515527.cms#ixzz0yw3NJL9n

Shiney Ahuja's maid denies he raped her

Shiney Ahuja's maid denies he raped her

 

 

 

 

After making it to the national headlines, Shiney Ahuja's maid has told told the fast track court that the actor never raped her. She admitted slapping false charges on the actor on the instructions of the woman who helped her in getting the job with Ahujas.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/embedvideo.cmsmsid=6517552&height=250&width=310&adsid=35627&slotid=156&trackid=153&trackpostid=172

Meanwhile, Shiney Ahuja, who is fighting an alleged rape case hurled at him by his maid servant, has faced a big setback on his professional front.
TOI has learned that the makers of his highly anticipated projected Har Pall (who were contemplating releasing the film soon), that stars Preity Zinta in the lead, have decided to push back the release until the court passes its verdict. With the timeline of when the case will be resolved yet unavailable, it is not good news for the actor who is hoping to come back to the industry and reclaim his ground with this movie as well as Accident in which he is paired opposite Soha Ali Khan.
"With such negative publicity against Shiney still grabbing headlines, the makers of Har Pall are wary of releasing the film. They feel it will get disastrous box office results if they release it now. According to perception, many pundits feel that audiences will reject Shiney's film as he still hasn't been pronounced free of the charges of raping his domestic servant. Shiney's brand name needs to get positive light somehow to resurrect his acting career," says a top trade source on conditions of anonymity.
"For the makers it is important that Shiney gets a verdict in favour of him. They will quickly release the film by riding on the positive wave. If not, they will then plan how they can still release it as lots of money is at stake. They will have to go ahead and promote the film with or without Shiney. The film is completely ready which means the producers have kept their investment locked and that's not good," the source adds. The director of Har Pall, Jahnu Barua, confirms TOI's news and adds, "The situation is such that we have to wait and watch."
PTI adds:
The 20-year-old girl appeared before a court on September 3, and said that she was never raped by Shiney and that she had filed the complaint against the actor at the behest of the woman who had secured her the job of a maid in Ahuja's residence.
"On September 3, the victim identified Shiney in the court and said she used to work at his residence as a domestic help. But when asked about the incident she said it never happened and that she was never raped," public prosecutor Kashinath Dighe said.
Following this, the court declared her hostile. If the court deems fit, she can be punished for perjury, he said. The prosecution will continue presenting other evidence including the statements of 12 other witnesses, forensic reports and other documentary evidence. The next date of hearing has been fixed on September 15.

The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/Shiney-never-raped-me-Maid/articleshow/6512247.cms#ixzz0yvuwjUAs

 

Shiney Ahuja's maid denies he raped her

 

Shiney Ahuja's maid denies he raped her

September 8, 2010

A woman who worked as domestic help for actor Shiney Ahuja has denied in court that the actor raped her.The same woman had accused Ahuja of rape in 2009. The actor spent three months in jail. He admitted to having consensual sex with her.

http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/news/shiney-ahujas-maid-denies-he-raped-her/162596?cp

Breaking Myths-Men also face Sexual Harassment at Workplace - Court: No Presumption Men Welcome Sexual Advances

Breaking Myths-Men also face Sexual Harassment at Workplace - Court: No Presumption Men Welcome Sexual Advances. Demand Sexual Harassment at Workplace Bill be made GENDER NEUTRAL

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Page 1

Court: No Presumption Men Welcome Sexual Advances

By STEVEN M. ELLIS, Staff Writer

A Nevada man’s concession that most reasonable men would have “welcomed” the sexual advances of his female coworker did not support a federal judge’s conclusion that he wasn’t sexually harassed, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday.

Reasoning that Rudolpho Lamas’ allegations of six months of unwanted advances and indifference by management raised issues of fact, a three-judge panel said Nevada U.S. District Judge Kent J. Dawson erred in dismissing on summary judgment an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit against Lamas’ employer.

Lamas was recently widowed and working as a passenger service assistant for Prospect Airport Services Inc. in Las Vegas’ international airport in the fall of 2002 when, he claimed, his married coworker, Sylvia Munoz, initiated a series of sexual overtures that caused him psychological distress that affected his job performance and led to his firing.

Maintaining that he never invited the advances and consistently rejected them, and that his coworker’s conduct embarrassed him as a Christian, Lamas said that Munoz repeatedly propositioned him for sex and wrote him notes indicating that she dreamed of him in a bath and gave “good bath wash and body massage” and that she wanted him “sexually.” He also alleged that Munoz performed gestures simulating oral sex, gave him a photograph emphasizing her breasts in which she was possibly nude, and recruited coworkers to pressure him who later mocked him by suggesting he was homosexual.

Lamas said he reported Munoz’s behavior to his immediate supervisor, who took no action, and then took his concerns up the chain of management. Although Prospect’s manager at the airport informally warned Munoz that action would be taken if she did not stop, Lamas alleged that Munoz’s inappropriate behavior continued and that another manager later told him he should just “walk around singing to yourself…I’m too sexy for my shirt.”

Although Lamas said his previous job performance had led to his assignment to a concourse serving Southwest Airlines in order to head off the carrier’s threatened termination of a contract with Prospect, he was eventually fired amid complaints about his job performance and “negative attitude,” which Lamas attributed to the stress he suffered from Munoz’s behavior. Munoz, in contrast, was not disciplined, even though men had been fired under Prospect’s sexual harassment policy.

Lamas filed a complaint with the EEOC, which brought under suit Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but Dawson granted summary judgment to Prospect. He concluded that Munoz’s conduct was not severe and pervasive enough to amount to sexual harassment objectively for a reasonable man.  

Dawson also emphasized that Lamas never filed a written complaint, even though the company’s policy did not require one, and that management had advised Munoz that her behavior was inappropriate.

But Judge Andrew J. Kleinfeld wrote on appeal:

“It cannot be assumed that because a man receives sexual advances from a woman that those advances are welcome. Lamas suggested this might be true of other men….But that is a stereotype and welcomeness is inherently subjective.”

Noting that Lamas had sought medical help while working for Prospect to deal with the anxiety he suffered, and that Lamas repeatedly broke down crying in a deposition while recounting his experience, the judge said the evidence in the record created a genuine issue of material fact as to whether Munoz’s advances were welcome, and whether they impaired Lamas’ work.

Kleinfeld further concluded that a jury could reasonably find that Prospect knew about the harassment, and that the company’s response was inadequate.

Judges Milan D. Smith Jr. and Sandra S. Ikuta joined Kleinfeld in his opinion.

The case is Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Prospect Airport Services, Inc., 07-17221.

Copyright 2010, Metropolitan News Company

http://www.metnews.com/articles/2010/eeoc090710.htm

Col, wife cooked up sex charge against general

Col, wife cooked up sex charge against general

NEW DELHI: Investigations into sexual harassment allegations levelled against a senior Army general by a colonel's wife have taken a sensational new twist.
A court of inquiry (COI) into the allegations against Army's engineer-in- chief Lt-Gen A K Nanda has exonerated him, while recommending disciplinary action against Colonel C P S Pasricha, who accused the general of sexually harassing his wife.
According to sources, the COI headed by Lt-Gen A S Lamba, chief of the Shimla-based Army Training Command, submitted its report over a week ago. The inquiry panel, which included a senior Army woman doctor, found that allegations against Nanda were unsubstantiated and inconsistent. More importantly, the COI found that Pasricha and his wife had made a similar allegation against another Army officer in the past.
The report is presently being scrutinized by Army authorities in Western Command. Sources said once the Army chief approves the COI report, action will be taken.
According to sources, the COI has recommended that Pasricha be counselled for making the allegations. In Army, counselling is taken as a disciplinary measure and involves formally telling the relevant officer that he has committed a mistake and a repeat would be severely punished. The counselling is also entered in the officer's service records.
Pasricha, who was serving as technical secretary to Nanda, alleged that the general tried to sexually harass his wife when they were on a trip to Israel in May. The allegation, which came at a time when the armed forces were having to grapple with other controversies, left the Army red-faced and the general distraught.
Pasricha had alleged that the incident took place when Nanda, his wife, the colonel and his wife were visiting Israel in May. During the course of the probe, the COI had approached Israelis for further inputs but they politely told the investigators that Tel Aviv did not keep an eye on its friends. And the hotel's CCTV recordings had automatically been erased after three days.
An Indian military officer posted in Israel who was coordinating the visit of the delegation told the COI that on the day of the alleged incident, Pasricha and his wife went pub hopping for several hours after the incident allegedly took place. After the alleged incident, the two families had together taken a vacation in Egypt, the inquiry found.

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Col-wife-cooked-up-sex-charge-against-general/articleshow/6515807.cms

Bombay HC saves man from impotency tag

Bombay HC saves man from impotency tag

MUMBAI: Marital discord continues to flounder in a sea of legalese as harried courts try to reconcile differences between partners who don't even share a bed. The newest issue before Bombay HC in this territory is: can the police force a man to undergo medical tests to prove his manhood?


The issue arose before the Bombay high court when a Peddar Road-based woman sought the annulment of her 12-year-old marriage, claiming that it was never consummated. In her plea, she also complained of marital cruelty stemming from "his frustration".

On Monday, playing arbiter, the court suggested the couple, Shyam Talreja and Sunidhi Patel (names changed), divorce through mutual consent. But the proposition created further disagreements between the two: Patel insisted the consent terms mention her husband's "impotency", a demand Talreja opposed.

The judges, in a bid to avoid tainting the man with the stigma "no prudent person might agree to", offered a more "amiable phrase". "You may say 'there was no physical relationship between the parties' rather than 'non-consummation'," they said. The court has now asked the couple to sleep over its suggestion and return next Monday to settle the matter, failing which it is prepared to hear the husband's plea on merit.

The couple -- both in their late 30s -- hail from business families.

According to his lawyer, Edith Dey, Talreja worked for his father-in-law's stockbroking company but was sacked last year when marital trouble began. Late last year, Patel filed a complaint of physical cruelty against her husband and in-laws under Section 498-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). She alleged the physical violence was because of "his frustration arising out of impotency". The police arrested Talreja and his parents, but released them on bail.

Last month, Talreja said, when the police sought a change in his reporting schedule, he realised it was to have him tested for impotency at Nair Hospital. Aggrieved, he objected and got a medical report to show "all is well" from a private charitable hospital. But the police refused to accept Talreja's private report, forcing him to move the high court. A bench headed by Justice B H Marlapalle barred the medical tests.

Patel's lawyer Aabad Ponda on Monday said that a divorce which did not mention Talreja's "impotency" might mar her chances of remarriage and undermine the harassment she faced "for the last seven years". On her part, Dey questioned the "12-year delay in raising the impotency issue".

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/HC-saves-man-from-impotency-tag/articleshow/6516082.cms

Apply your mind: You cannot doubt a mother's bona fides -HC to passport officials

Apply your mind: You cannot doubt a mother's bona fides -HC to passport officials

MUMBAI: A woman estranged from her husband won a battle against passport authorities as well as police officials who had objected to her using a duplicate passport for her five-year-old son. On Tuesday, the Bombay high court not only ruled in the woman's favour but also gave the officials an earful.


Observing that a couple in the midst of a matrimonial dispute is likely to file cross-complaints against each other, a division bench of Justice D K Deshmukh and Justice N D Deshpande held that police officials should apply their minds.

The judges pulled up the Cuffe Parade police, deputy commissioner of police (special branch II) as well as the passport authorities. "You cannot doubt a mother's bona fides. Do you think getting a passport is easy? Why would she take so much trouble if she already has the original passport,'' the judges asked.

The court was hearing a petition filed by 37-year-old Priya Karia (name changed to protect identity), a resident of Cuffe Parade in south Mumbai. Priya moved the high court last month challenging a show cause notice issued by passport authorities in July this year seeking revocation of a duplicate passport issued to her son. Priya, in her petition, claimed that she applied for a duplicate passport for her son after her estranged husband informed her that he had misplaced/lost the boy's original passport.

Priya married Shekhar (name changed) in 2000. The couple had a son in 2005. Priya, in her petition, alleged that she was harassed by her husband and in-laws and was compelled to leave her matrimonial home in June 2009.

Priya claims that Shekhar and his parents didn't allow her to take any valuables and important documents, including her son's passport. She asked Shekhar for the boy's passport as she wanted to go abroad with her mother.

Shekhar filed a complaint with the Cuffe Parade police, saying that their son's original passport was intact and that Priya had sought a duplicate passport on fake grounds. Taking a note of the complaint, DCP-SB II sent an ex-parte report to the passport authorities in June. The passport authorities then issued a show cause notice to Priya.

Representing the passport authorities, advocate Mandar Goswami said the petitioner will be allowed to use the duplicate passport and that the original will be confiscated.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Apply-your-mind-HC-to-passport-officials/articleshow/6515654.cms

No indulgence to wives for transfer of criminal cases against husbands: SC

No indulgence to wives for transfer of criminal cases against husbands: SC

Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN, Sep 8, 2010,

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has been very lenient in entertaining pleas of estranged wives for transfer of matrimonial cases to courts close to their place of stay. But in a recent order, it put its foot down saying the concession would not be given to wives for shifting of trial of dowry harassment cases filed by them under Section 498A of Indian Penal Code against husbands and their relatives.

This assumes significance in the wake of last month's judgment of the apex court firmly telling the government to have a relook at Section 498A saying it was being misused by women to lodge false or exaggerated complaints against husbands and their relatives accusing them of cruel behaviour.


In the case at hand, a woman had sought transfer of the criminal case under Section 498A lodged by her against her husband and his relatives from Hyderabad to Indore, where she had moved after leaving the matrimonial home.

Faulting her for not impleading other accused except her husband, a Bench comprising Justices Aftab Alam and R M Lodha said it was not inclined to transfer a criminal case from one state to another solely on the ground that it would be more convenient for the wife to pursue the matter.

"It is true that in cases of dissolution of marriage, restitution of conjugal rights or maintenance, the Supreme Court shows much indulgence to the wife and ordinarily transfers the case to a place where it would be more convenient to the wife to prosecute the proceedings," the Bench said.

"But a criminal case is on a somewhat different footing. The accused may not be able to attend the court proceedings at Indore for many reasons, one of which may be financial constraints, but the consequences of non-appearance of the accused before the Indore court would be quite drastic," it said.

"Having regard to the consequences of non-appearance of the accused in a criminal trial, we are loath to entertain the petitioner's prayer for transfer. In a criminal proceeding, the right of the accused to a fair trial and a proper opportunity to defend himself cannot be ignored for the convenience of the complainant simply because she happens to be the estranged wife," the Bench said dismissing the transfer petition.

dhananjay.mahapatra@timesgroup.com

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/No-indulgence-to-wives-for-transfer-of-criminal-cases-against-husbands-SC/articleshow/6514221.cms#ixzz0yvZjlFqf