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(c) where the person aggrieved by an offence punishable under section 494 or section 495 of the Indian Penal Code is the wife, complaint may be made on her behalf by her father, mother, brother, sister, son or daughter or by her father' s or mother's brother or sister or with the leave of the Court, by any other person related to her by blood, marriage or adoption.
(2 to 7) xx xx xx xx xx"
Let us make an attempt to ascertain the purpose of enacting Section 494, IPC. This Section introduces monogamy which is essentially voluntary union of life of one man with one woman to the exclusion of all others. It enacts that neither party must have a spouse living at the time of marriage. Polygamy was practiced in many sections of Hindu society in ancient times. It is not a matter of long past that in India, hypergamy brought forth wholesale polygamy and along with it misery, plight and ignominy to woman having no parallel in the word. In post vedic India a King could take and generally used to have more than one wife. Section 4 of the Hindu Marriage Act nullifies and supersedes such practice all over Indian among the Hindus. Section 494 is intended to achieve laudable object of monogamy. This object can be achieved only by expanding the meaning of the phrase 'aggrieved person'. For variety of reasons the first wife may not choose to file complaint against her husband e.g. when she is assured of re-union by her husband, when husband assures to snap the tie of second marriage etc. Non-filing of the complaint under Section 494, IPC by first wife does not mean that the offence is wiped out and monogamy sought to be achieved by means of Section 494, IPC merely remains in statute book. Having regard to the scope, purpose, context and object of enacting Section 494, IPC and also the prevailing practices in the society sought to be curbed by Section 494, IPC, there is no manner of doubt that the complainant should be an aggrieved person. Section 198(1)(c) of the Criminal Procedure Code, amongst other things, provides that where the person aggrieved by an offence under Section 494 or Section 495, IPC is the wife, complaint on her behalf may also be filed by her father, mother, sister, son, daughter etc., or with the leave of the court, by any other person related to her by blood, marriage or adoption."

After laying down above, Hon'ble the Apex Court further held that bar of Section 198 of the Code shall not be applicable if the charge sheet filed by the police also includes some other offences which are cognizable and while holding so, the Hon'ble Apex Court observed as under:-

" Here in this case in the charge sheet it is mentioned that the appellant has also committed offence under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code which is cognizable and, therefore, this is a case which relates to two or more offences of which at least one is cognizable and, therefore, the case must be deemed to be cognizable case notwithstanding that the other offences are non-cognizable. This is not a case in which the FIR is exclusively filed for commission of offences under Sections 494 and 495, IPC. The case of the respondent No.2 is that the appellant has committed offences punishable under Sections 417, 420, 494, 495 and 498-A of the IPC. A question may arise as to what should be procedure to be followed by a complainant when a case involves not only non- cognizable offence but one or more cognizable offences as well. It is somewhat anomalous that the aggrieved person by the alleged commission of offences punishable under Sections 494 and 495, IPC should file complaint before a court and that the same aggrieved person should approach the police officer for alleged commission of offences under Sections 417, 420 and 498-A of the Indian Penal Code where the case involves one cognizable offence also along with non- cognizable offences it should not be treated as a non- cognizable case for the purpose of sub-section 2 of Section 155 and that is the intention of legislation which manifested in Section 155 (4) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Therefore, the arguments that the learned Magistrate could not have taken cognizance of the offences punishable under Sections 494 and 495, IPC on the basis of submission of charge sheet, cannot be attested and is hereby rejected."

From the above discussed legal position, it comes out that Section 198 sets out the prohibition for the Court from taking cognizance of an offence punishable under Chapter XX of the Indian Penal Code. The cognizance, however, can be taken only if the complaint is made by the person aggrieved by the offence. Clause (c) appended to the Proviso to sub- section (1) provides that where a person aggrieved is the wife, a complaint may be made on her behalf by her father, mother, brother, sister, son or daughter or other relations mentioned therein who are related to her by blood, marriage or adoption. Thus where a charge sheet filed by the police after investigating a case registered on the basis of an FIR showing commission of offence under section 494 or section 495 or both only, the court cannot take cognizance on that charge sheet as the same is barred under Section 198 of the Cr.P.C. but if such a charge sheet also includes any cognizable offence such as offence under Section 420, IPC or Section 498-A, IPC etc., the bar under Section 198 shall not be attracted to such case.