Family Court Cannot Try Criminal Cases Under IPC: Supreme Court Corrects A 'Wrong Order' Passed In Transfer Petition

The Family Court cannot deal with a criminal complaint for various offences under the Indian Penal Code, the Supreme Court remarked while modifying an earlier 'wrong' order it had passed in a transfer petition.

The court had, earlier this year, allowed a Transfer Petition 'as prayed for'. But the said prayer sought to transfer criminal case registered under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code (including under Section 498-A IPC)  from the Judicial Magistrate Court Thane, Maharashtra, to the Family Court, Vadodara, Gujarat. 

The Family Judge, Vadodara, Gujarat, on receiving the files, wrote a letter to the Supreme Court Registry and brought this mistake to its notice. Thus the matter was again placed before the Court as a 'Miscellaneous Application'.

"Though..learned counsel for the Respondent contended that it is the petitioner's own making and that the petitioner made a wrong prayer in the Transfer Petition, I do not think that the operative portion of the order passed in the Transfer Petition can be allowed to stand. The Family Court, as a matter of fact, cannot deal with a criminal complaint for various offences under the IPC. A wrong order of the Court cannot be allowed to stand on the ground that one of the parties invited the same.", Justice V. Ramasubramanian said.

The court then modified the earlier order with a direction to transfer the criminal proceedings to a competent court in Vadodara, Gujarat as directed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Vadodara. If the Family Court, Vadodara has already received the file of the transferred case, the same shall be sent to the Chief Judicial Magistrate for allotment of the same to the competent Court, the court said.

Know the Law

As per Section 7 of the Family Courts Act, a family court can exercise the jurisdictions exercisable by any district court of any subordinate civil court under any law for the time being in force in respect of the following suits and proceedings

1. A suit or proceeding between the parties to a marriage for a decree of nullity of marriage ( declaring the marriage to be null and void or, as the case may be, annulling the marriage) or restitution of conjugal rights or judicial separation or dissolution of marriage;
   
2. A suit or proceeding for a declaration as to the validity of a marriage or as to the matrimonial status of any person;
3. A suit or proceeding between the parties to a marriage with respect to the property to the parties or of either of them;
4. A suit or proceeding for an order or injunction in circumstances arising out of a marital relationship;
5. A suit or proceeding for a declaration as to the legitimacy of any person;
6. A suit or proceeding for maintenance;
7. A suit or proceeding in relation to the guardianship of the person or the custody or, or access to, any minor.

It can also exercise the jurisdiction exercisable by a Magistrate of the first class under Chapter IX (relating to an order for maintenance of wife, children and parents) of the code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974); and such other jurisdiction as may be conferred on it by any other enactment.

Click here to Read/Download Order