Marriage doesn't mean ownership of wife: HC slams husband for uploading intimate video without consent

The Allahabad High Court has ruled that marriage does not give a husband the right to control his wife's privacy or autonomy. The court made this clear while refusing to quash a criminal case against a man accused of uploading an intimate video of himself and his wife on Facebook.

Dismissing the application to cancel the charge sheet, Justice Vinod Diwakar said, "By uploading an intimate video on Facebook, the applicant (husband) has gravely breached the sanctity of the marital relationship. A husband is expected to honour the trust, faith, and confidence reposed in him by his wife, particularly in the context of their intimate relationship."

The court further stressed that sharing such private content is a violation of the confidentiality that defines the bond between a husband and wife. It highlighted that a wife's bodily autonomy and privacy should be respected, stating, "A wife is not an extension of her husband but an individual with her own rights, desires, and agency."

The Case Details

A woman from Mirzapur district filed a case against her husband, Pradumn Yadav, under Section 67 of the IT Act. She accused him of making an obscene video of an intimate moment without her consent and uploading it on Facebook. The video was also shared with her cousin and other villagers.

Yadav's counsel argued that since they are legally married, there is no offence under Section 67 of the IT Act, and there is a possibility of reconciliation. However, the Additional Government Advocate opposed this, saying that being a husband does not give the right to create or share such content without consent.

Inputs from PTI