In Brief
Vandana Chavan was named as an accused in a dowry harassment complaint under Section 498A IPC based on an alleged adoptive relationship with the complainant's husband. The appellant contended she was merely the tenant's landlord and had no legal relationship with him. The Court held that without formal legal establishment of adoption, merely treating someone as an adopted son cannot constitute grounds for criminal liability. Since no legal adoption relationship was established, the appellant could not be validly impleaded as an accused. The appeal was partly allowed and proceedings against the appellant were set aside."
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