Kanoon Ki Dastak
The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has reiterated that proceedings under Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act are quasi-civil in nature and do not warrant the mandatory personal appearance of the respondent.
Justice Sanjay Dhar, while deciding a petition held that treating such proceedings as criminal in nature and insisting on the respondent’s personal attendance was contrary to the settled legal position.
“The proceedings under the DV Act are not in the nature of criminal proceedings which require personal attendance of the respondent,” the Court observed, stressing that several prior judgments, including those of the Supreme Court, have clarified this legal distinction.
The observation came in response to the approach adopted by the Trial Magistrate, who had insisted on the petitioner’s presence, treating the DV application akin to a criminal complaint.