When Does Section 498A IPC / Section 85 BNS Apply to Live-in Relationships?

The Expanding Frontier of Matrimonial Offenses

Does the protective umbrella of Section 498A IPC (now Section 85 Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023) extend to live-in relationships and de facto partnerships? The Supreme Court of India in Dr. Lokesh B.H. & Ors. v. State of Karnataka & Anr. (2026 INSC 412) has drawn a strict statutory line between valid marriages and non-formalized cohabitation.

1. The Core Legal Question: Marriage vs. Cohabitation

Under Section 498A of the IPC (and Section 85 of BNS), criminal prosecution requires that the complainant be the lawful wife of the accused or a person claiming relationship through a recognized marriage. Historically, several High Courts diverged on whether long-term cohabitation creating a presumption of marriage under Section 114 of the Indian Evidence Act would suffice to sustain a 498A charge-sheet.

"The penal statute must be strictly construed. While the Domestic Violence Act 2005 recognizes 'relationships in the nature of marriage' for civil remedies and maintenance, Section 498A IPC / Section 85 BNS demands the legal status of husband and wife to attract criminal sanctions."
— Supreme Court of India in Dr. Lokesh B.H.

2. Critical Takeaways for Litigants in Ghaziabad & NCR

• Strict Exclusion from 498A: If there was no ceremonial or registered marriage under personal laws (HMA, Special Marriage Act), Section 498A criminal charges against the partner or his parents are liable to be quashed under Section 482 CrPC / Section 528 BNSS.
• Alternative Remedies Under DV Act: A live-in partner can still claim interim maintenance, residence orders, and compensation under Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (PWDVA).
• Parental Immunity: Parents and relatives of a male live-in partner cannot be dragged into matrimonial cruelty FIRs absent a validly solemnized marriage.

3. Quashing a 498A FIR After a Live-in Relationship

Where a 498A FIR comes out of a live-in relationship that has broken down, the accused can ask the Allahabad High Court (or the Delhi High Court, for a Delhi FIR) to quash it under Section 482 CrPC / Section 528 BNSS, on the ground that there was no valid marriage: no Saptapadi or other ceremony, and no registration. The petition can also ask for a stay of coercive action while it's pending. Whether to grant either is for the High Court.