Which one of the following statements is not true of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005?

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA), 2005, is a rights-based legislation providing civil remedies to women facing domestic abuse [2]. While the Act primarily targets male respondents, the Supreme Court of India, in the landmark case 'Sandhya Wankhede vs. Manoj Bhimrao Wankhede' (2011), clarified that the term 'respondent' is not restricted to adult males. A woman can seek relief against female relatives of the husband or male partner as well. Therefore, statement 3 is incorrect as it wrongly suggests relief is limited only to the husband or male live-in partner. The Act is inclusive, covering wives, sisters, mothers, and women in 'marriage-like' (live-in) relationships [2]. It aims to protect the 'aggrieved person'—defined as any woman in a domestic relationship—from various forms of harassment and violence within the home [2].

Sources

1. [1] Indian Polity, M. Laxmikanth(7th ed.) > Chapter 59: National Commission for Women > WORKING" > p. 482
2. [2] Democratic Politics-II. Political Science-Class X . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 3: Gender, Religion and Caste > Daily time use (hours: minutes) > p. 34