Nikita Barooah, PhD Research Scholar, National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam (NLUJAA)
ABSTRACT
The marital misconduct of 'Adultery' was a criminal offence in India till it was decriminalized by the Supreme Court of India in Joseph Shine v. Union of India in September 2018 whereby, Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Section 198(2) of The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 were struck down. Despite the fact that Adultery remains a civil wrong and a ground for dissolution of marriage, the decision has raised a slew of social and legal concerns, as Adultery no longer being a criminal offence could possibly undermine family values and lead to a breakdown in sexual morality by encouraging extramarital affairs. In this paper an attempt is made to analyze the landmark judgment of Joseph Shine v. Union of India, to set forth the interests and conflicts involved in decriminalizing the marital misconduct of 'Adultery' in India and to examine whether the retention, modification or repeal of a criminal legislation punishing 'Adultery' is necessary in contemporary India.
Keywords: Adultery, Decriminalization, Joseph Shine, Conflicts, Marital Misconduct
