An IIT-IIM graduate, Prathyusha Challa, a Software Engineer, sensitised the nation about the false use of this section, Section 498A of IPC, by portraying her family’s real incident in YouTube video. She said her sister-in-law used to frame her and fabricate dowry harassment cases, which put her through several years of torture.
Section 498A was added to protect married women from cruelty but have been criticized for misuse for its provisions. The recent Supreme Court has expressed concerns regarding the so called ‘a growing trend’ where the law is misused to lash out own grievances, noting that vague accusations would lead to harassment of dear families.
Pratyusha Challa is an IIT IIM Graduate
But she is also a #498A “accused”
Her sister-in-law who stayed with her family for just 10 days has implicated her entire family in #498A accusing them of dowry & domestic violence
Pratyusha has exactly 2 lines against her in FIR but… pic.twitter.com/wvEUp9Ln6n
— Deepika Narayan Bhardwaj (@DeepikaBhardwaj) January 9, 2025
Challa’s case is typical of these problems. Her brother is an assistant professor in Hyderabad, who got married to a Rajahmundry girl in February 2019. And within days events became aggressive. Challa accused the woman of being violent towards her in-laws, locking her husband out of their bedroom, and continually threatening to kill herself. She left her home ten days later and lodged a complaint under section 498A of IPC against the family for harassment.
Challa said that the case was part of a blackmailing scheme by her sister in law family because they had engaged themselves in similar cases in the past. She also Dur that the police had not adhered to the Supreme Court directive of proper counselling or investigation before filing an FIR barring her that the process had been done deliberately.
The family has suffered through five years of litigation; Challa’s brother went to and from Hyderabad and Rajahmundry 39 times. As already mentioned, long proceedings having an impact on the well-being of a family – Here, the petitioner and the family has been absent for quite sometime leaving the well being of this family in a very poor state due to the long duration of the legal process.
Recent judgment of Hon’ble Supreme Court also support Challa’s case and those cases should be scrutinized very carefully because there are many fake cases filed by wife to harass husband and families. These years have been nothing but a nightmare for Challa’s family and speak volume of the fact that much as to call for requisite amendment of the law.
