Not marrying the person, with whom there was relationship not cheating: Karnataka HC

Failure to get married to the person, with whom a person has been in a relationship, does not amount to cheating, a single Bench of Karnataka High Court ruled on Saturday.

Justice K Natarajan of Karnataka High Court quashed a First Information Report (FIR) filed by a lady against a man and his family claiming that she had been cheated. According to the complaint, the couple was in a relationship for eight years. However, the man informed the complainant that he would not be able to marry her when, reportedly, the man's family found another woman for him to marry. 

The FIR charged the man and his family of cheating and sought to evoke Section 420 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) against them. The FIR was lodged with Ramamurthynagar police on May 5, 2020. The man then filed a plea in the High Court seeking the quashing of the FIR against him and his family.

Justice Natarajan, who heard the case, said that being in a relationship and not getting married to the same person is not cheating and it won't evoke Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Quashing the FIR registered against the man and his family members, the judge said, “The contract was not breached by fraudulent intent. It cannot be said that he did this with the intent of cheating.”