The Allahabad High Court has refused to quash criminal proceedings against a man accused of uploading an intimate video of himself and his wife on Facebook, ruling that marriage does not give a husband ownership or control over his wife.
Justice Vinod Diwakar emphasized that sharing such private content constitutes a grave violation of trust and the inherent confidentiality that defines marital relationships. The Court asserted that a wife is an independent individual with her own rights, autonomy, and agency, and that respecting her privacy is both a legal and moral duty.
The accused had sought to have the case—filed in Mirzapur in 2022 under Section 67 of the Information Technology Act—dismissed, arguing that as the woman’s husband, no offense was committed and that the matter could be settled.
However, the prosecution contended that the accused had secretly recorded the intimate act and then shared the video on Facebook before distributing it to the complainant’s cousin and others in their village. Given the serious nature of the allegations, the Court declined to quash the case, stating that there was no indication of malice or personal vendetta behind the criminal proceedings.
