The Supreme Court on Thursday decriminnalised Section 497 (adultery) of IPC. The apex court said that adultery is not a crime unless it attracts the scope of Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Panel Code (IPC). In its judgment, the SC said, “Adultery can be ground for civil issues including dissolution of marriage but it cannot be a criminal offence”. Chief Justice of India, Deepak Misra on the petition challenging the validity of Section 497 (Adultery) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) said, “The magnificent beauty of the democracy is I, you and we. Equality is the governing principle of a system. Husband is not the master of the wife”. He further added, “Parameters of fundamental rights should include rights of women. Individual dignity is important in sanctified society. System can’t treat women unequally. Women can’t be asked to think what a society desires”.
