The Calcutta High Court has refused to quash criminal proceedings against Sk. Azharuddin @ Akash, holding that a formally valid traditional marriage is not an indispensable requirement for maintaining a prosecution under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) where the relationship is shown to be in the nature of marriage.
Justice Uday Kumar dismissed the criminal revision petition after finding that the investigation had produced prima facie material showing that the petitioner and the complainant had lived together as spouses.
Background Of The Case
The case arose from Burdwan Police Station Case No. 587 of 2022 and G.R. Case No. 2793 of 2022. The complainant, Koyel Begum alias Jaya Roy, alleged that the petitioner represented himself as unmarried and later entered into a relationship with her after she converted to Islam. She claimed that they underwent a Muslim marriage ceremony on July 2, 2020, and subsequently lived together as husband and wife.
The complainant further alleged that she later discovered that the petitioner was already married. According to her case, disputes followed and she was allegedly subjected to physical and mental cruelty before being driven out of their shared residence on May 1, 2022. The police investigation resulted in Charge Sheet No. 984 of 2022 under Sections 498A, 420 and 384 IPC.
The petitioner argued that Section 498A could not apply because there was no legally valid marriage between the parties. He also relied on the complainant's earlier marriage and the absence of documentary proof of the alleged Muslim marriage.Court's Observation
The High Court relied on the Supreme Court's decisions in Dr. Lokesh B.H. & Ors. v. State of Karnataka & Anr. and Reema Aggrawal v. Anupam, which recognised that the expression "husband" under Section 498A cannot always be restricted to a technically valid marriage.
The Court observed:
"A formal, traditional marriage is not an indispensable prerequisite for the maintenance of a prosecution under Section 498A of the IPC."
The Court noted that the landlord, Md. Mirza, had stated that the parties lived together in his rented premises as spouses. Statements of the complainant's parents also supported the prosecution version. These materials, according to the Court, were sufficient at this stage to disclose a prima facie case.
The Court also made clear that proceedings under Section 482 CrPC cannot be used to conduct a mini-trial. Questions concerning the complainant's previous marriage, the alleged conversion, the validity of the marriage ceremony and the nature of the relationship were disputed factual matters that required examination during trial.Decision
Justice Uday Kumar held that the criminal prosecution was legally maintainable at the threshold and that there was no exceptional ground to quash the chargesheet. The Court accordingly dismissed C.R.R. No. 1457 of 2024.
The interim orders, if any, were vacated, with no order as to costs. The trial court was directed to proceed expeditiously in accordance with law while protecting the procedural rights of both parties.
Case Details
Case Title: Sk. Azharuddin @ Akash v. State of West Bengal & Anr.
Case Number: CRR 1457 of 2024
Judge: Justice Uday Kumar
Decision Date: September 2, 2026
