Kochi: In a significant verdict, the Kerala High Court ruled that a woman cannot be evicted from her matrimonial home, even after her husband’s death.
The case relates to a 41-year-old woman, who had accused the in-laws of trying to force her and her children out of the house she shared with her late husband.
The woman had approached the Sessions court in Palakkad, seeking justice under Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005. The court ruled in her favour, overturning an earlier order by a magistrate that had dismissed her plea.
The woman’s in-laws then challenged the Sessions Court’s decision in the High Court.
Dismissing the in-laws’ petition, Justice MB Snehalatha said that under Section 17 of the Domestic Violence Act, every woman in a domestic relationship has the right to live in the shared household, regardless of whether she owns it or has any legal claim to it.
The in-laws claimed that the woman had not lived in the house since her husband’s death, and owned another property. Their counsel also argued that there was no domestic relationship with the woman anymore, and hence the Domestic Violence Act should not apply to them.
However, the high court stated that evidence showed the in-laws had committed acts of domestic violence by trying to evict her and her children.
Calling the Domestic Violence Act a landmark law meant to protect women and uphold their right to live in their matrimonial home, the high court ruled that the Sessions court was right in granting protection to the widow.
