The Supreme Court Today (July 14) ruled that secretly recorded conversations between spouses can be used as legal evidence in matrimonial cases. The court said such recordings show a lack of trust, which itself indicates a troubled marriage.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India today said that secretly recording phone calls or private conversations between husband and wife can be used as evidence in court during matrimonial disputes like divorce or cruelty cases.
The court explained that if spouses are spying or recording each other, then it clearly means the marriage is already weak or broken, so such recordings can be helpful in legal proceedings.
A Supreme Court bench consisting of Justice B V Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma passed this judgment.
They set aside (cancelled) an earlier decision by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had said that such secret recordings are not allowed under the Indian Evidence Act, especially under Section 122.
By reversing that High Court ruling, the Supreme Court restored the earlier order of the Family Court, which had allowed a husband to use a CD containing phone recordings with his wife to prove cruelty. Now, the family court has been asked to continue the case and consider these recordings while making a judgment.
Section 122 of the Indian Evidence Act protects the privacy of communications between a married couple. It says:
“No person who is or has been married, shall be compelled to disclose any communication made to him during marriage by any person to whom he is or has been married.”
But the Supreme Court clarified that if one spouse secretly records the other, it is proof that trust is already missing in the marriage, and in such cases, these recordings can be used as legal evidence.
This particular case began in a Family Court in Bathinda, where a husband submitted a CD containing secretly recorded phone calls with his wife. He said these recordings showed cruelty from the wife’s side. The wife objected and said the recordings were made without her permission and were a violation of her right to privacy.
She then approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which agreed with her and said such evidence was not legally acceptable. The High Court said that secretly recording a spouse without consent is a serious breach of privacy and cannot be allowed in a legal trial.
However, the Supreme Court did not agree with the High Court’s view. Justice Nagarathna made an important observation in the courtroom. She said:
“Some arguments have been made that permitting such evidence would jeopardise domestic harmony and matrimonial relationships as it would encourage snooping on the spouses, therefore infringing the objective of Section 122 of the Evidence Act.”
But the judge firmly rejected this argument by adding:
“We don’t think such an argument is tenable. If the marriage has reached a stage where spouses are actively snooping on each other, that is in itself a symptom of a broken relationship and denotes a lack of trust between them.”
The Supreme Court made it clear that the recordings show the real situation in the marriage and can help the court understand the matter better. This judgment now becomes a key legal precedent in future matrimonial cases across India.
As of now, the detailed written judgment of the Supreme Court is still awaited, but this verbal ruling is already creating a big impact in the legal and matrimonial world.
CASE TITLE:
Vibhor Garg vs Neha
SLP(C) No. 21195/2021
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