Husband's Live-in Not a Crime: What About Wives' Loyalty?

• Supreme Court's 2018 ruling decriminalized adultery (Section 497 IPC), allowing married men to live with another woman without criminal charges.
• The judgment, in 'Joseph Shine v. Union of India', stated that criminalizing adultery violated women's dignity and personal choice, and a husband is not his wife's master.
• This legal shift raises questions about the value of loyalty for wives who dedicate their lives to family, potentially making them feel insecure and neglected.
• While not a crime, a husband's live-in relationship can be grounds for divorce and the wife can seek maintenance under the Domestic Violence Act.
• Bigamy (marrying a second time without divorce) remains a crime under Section 494 IPC, distinguishing it from consensual 'living together'.