Marriage is a sacred relationship between two people who wish to spend their lives with each other and grow old with each other. There is literally no place for a third person in this relationship but this has never deterred anyone from indulging in bigamy despite it being illegal as per the law. And in a recent case, the Karnataka High Court issued a judgment calling bigamy a continuing offence while adding that the consent of the wife for the subsequent marriage is immaterial for consideration of the offence.
While hearing a petition filed by a 76-year-old man and his third wife, seeking to quash the criminal proceedings initiated against both of them by the man’s first wife, the single judge bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna observed that the proceeding against both petitioners cannot be quashed as the offence has been admitted by the first petitioner in the petition. Speaking further the court stated that the consent of the first wife or both the first and second wives for the third time would be immaterial for consideration of the offence of bigamy.
In this case, the petitioners had submitted that the allegation of polygamy against the first petitioner (husband) is baseless as the respondent/complainant was aware of his relationships as she gave consent for the petitioner for his subsequent marriages. It also stated that the complaint was filed in 2018 which was after years of being married to the second petitioner and years of the complainant being aware of the second marriage. On the other hand, the complainant/respondent submitted that she wasn’t aware of the petitioner’s marriage with his third wife (the second petitioner in the case). She further claimed that hiding the fact that the first petitioner was already married and went on to marry the second petitioner would amount to bigamy.
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According to Live Law, the single judge bench of the Karnataka High Court observed that several other high courts have had similar views that bigamy is a “continuing offence”. It went on to add that the facts of the case leave no doubt that the husband contracted a second and even a third marriage during the time he was married to the complainant, adding that the fact doesn’t need any interpretation as the man admits that he is married to three women which means that “he is in the web of the offence punishable under Section 494 of the IPC”.
The Karnataka High Court observed that all three women married the first petitioner during the subsistence of each other’s marriage and being aware of his preceding marriage and added that the proceedings against them will continue. The court further added that the properties of the husband were equally divided amongst the wives which means that the first wife was aware of her husband’s second as well as third marriage and they all lived together peacefully.
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In 2018, the complainant/respondent had filed a complaint against the petitioner alleging offences punishable under Sections 494 (bigamy), 109 (abatement) and 34 of the IPC. She had also filed an application under section 12 of the Domestic Violence Act.
