In-laws told to provide woman accommodation or pay her rent

New Delhi: Directing the in-laws of a woman to either arrange accommodation for her or pay the rent for her separate stay, a court has observed that an aggrieved person under Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act has the right to reside in the shared household even in the absence of actual residence in it. Citing a Supreme Court ruling, the court of additional sessions judge Sharad Gupta said in his June 6 order that a woman couldn't be excluded from the shared household even if she didn't actually reside there. The petitioner, Shalini Chauhan, alleged that after her marriage in 2021 in Faridabad, she was subjected to domestic violence, following which she decided to live separately. The court was hearing her appeal against an order of a magisterial court in Sept 2023, which did not issue directions on the issue of accommodation.Vineet Chauhan, her husband who is absconding, didn't give interim maintenance to her since Jan 2023. The appellant, through her advocate Archana Sharma, said she was facing financial difficulties as her husband had filed a plea claiming he wasn't involved in any violence and not liable to pay maintenance. The judge directed the father and brother of the husband to either permit the woman to reside in the matrimonial home or arrange a separate rented premises and pay Rs 7,000 per month for rent for six months from the date of the order or until the final disposal of the complaint of the appellant under PWDV Act.The court observed that there was nothing on record to suggest that the relationship between the husband and his family members was peaceful or that he was colluding with them. "Rather, as per record, the respondent no. 1 has abandoned his parents as well as his wife. Thus, considering that the appellant was living in the matrimonial home prior to the breakdown of relationships, the respondents would have to provide some shelter or rent to the appellant for a reasonable period of time," the judge said.