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Quick Answer
Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 (replacing Section 498A IPC) criminalises cruelty by the husband or his relatives — including unlawful demands for property, harassment driving the woman to suicide or grave injury, and conduct likely to cause grave injury or danger to life. The Supreme Court in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar, (2014) 8 SCC 273, held that automatic arrest in 498A cases is impermissible — police must apply Section 35(3) BNSS notice procedure. The Supreme Court has expressed concern about misuse but maintains the protective scope of the provision.
Statutory reference
Section 85 BNS 2023
In practice the section runs on two tracks at once. For the complainant wife, the FIR is typically filed with supporting detail of specific acts, dates and dowry demands — vague omnibus allegations against the entire extended family are the single most common reason cases collapse. For the accused husband and in-laws, the immediate playbook is anticipatory bail (granted liberally for relatives with peripheral roles), strict reliance on the Arnesh Kumar safeguards — since the offence is punishable up to three years, arrest requires recorded justification and the Section 35(3) BNSS notice regime applies — and, where the allegations are demonstrably a pressure tactic, a quashing petition. Most 498A matters end not in conviction but in a mediated global settlement: the criminal case is quashed on settlement as part of a mutual consent divorce package.
Worked example
A week after a Delhi husband files for divorce, an FIR under BNS Section 85 names him, his parents, and his married sister in Lucknow. All four obtain anticipatory bail — the sister's counsel showing she visited the couple twice in three years, the court noting the omnibus nature of the allegations. The Family Court refers the couple to mediation, where a comprehensive settlement emerges: mutual consent divorce, ₹25 lakh one-time alimony, return of stridhan. After the second motion and final payment, the Delhi High Court quashes the FIR on the settlement — the standard arc for the large majority of contested 498A matters.
Related practice areas
Penal provision criminalising cruelty by husband or his relatives towards a married woman. Cognizable, non-bailable, non-compoundable. Section 85 BNS replaced Section 498A IPC effective 1 July 2024.
Section 498A IPC / Section 85 BNS is governed by Section 85 BNS 2023. Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 (replacing Section 498A IPC) criminalises cruelty by the husband or his relatives — including unlawful demands for property, harassment driving the woman to suicide or grave injury, and conduct likely to cause grave injury or danger to life. The Supreme Court in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar, (2014) 8 SCC 273, held that automatic arrest in 498A cases is impermissible — police must apply Section 35(3) BNSS notice procedure. The Supreme Court has expressed concern about misuse but maintains the protective scope of the provision.
Section 498A IPC / Section 85 BNS falls under Family & Matrimonial, Criminal Law. NyaySevak matches you with a Bar-Council-verified advocate in the relevant practice area — your first step is a free case assessment with no obligation.
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