Can My Husband or In-Laws Throw Me Out of the House? A Wife’s Right to Residence

“Leave this house, it is not yours.” Many married women in Mumbai hear this from a husband or in-laws, especially when the flat is in the name of the father-in-law. The law gives a woman a specific right to stay in the home she shared with her husband, whoever owns it. This guide explains that right and its limits.

The right in one line

Section 17 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 says that every woman in a domestic relationship has the right to reside in the shared household, whether or not she has any right, title or interest in it, and she shall not be evicted or excluded from it, or any part of it, except in accordance with the procedure established by law.

What is a “shared household”?

It is the house where she lives or has lived in a domestic relationship, whether owned or rented, by the husband alone, jointly, or by a member of the joint family. Two Supreme Court decisions are central:

• Satish Chander Ahuja v. Sneha Ahuja (2020): a house owned by the father-in-law or mother-in-law, where the woman lived with her husband, can be a shared household. This overruled the earlier view in S.R. Batra v. Taruna Batra (2007) that only the husband’s own house qualified.
• Prabha Tyagi v. Kamlesh Devi (2022): the right includes “constructive” residence; a woman need not have physically lived there, or be living there when she applies, to enforce it.

Limits of the right

• It is a right to reside, not a right of ownership. She does not become an owner of the in-laws’ property.
• The court balances it against the rights of others. Where the owners are senior citizens, courts weigh their rights under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, and may direct the husband to provide alternative accommodation instead.
• Under Section 19, the Magistrate can order that she be allowed to stay, restrain the respondents from dispossessing her, direct the husband to stay away, or direct him to pay rent for a comparable home.
• A removal order under Section 19(1)(b) cannot be passed against any woman, such as a mother-in-law, though other orders can be.

If you are locked out or forced out

1. Call 112 if you are in danger, or approach the local police station and record what happened. Keep a copy of the complaint.
2. Do not accept being shut out quietly. Note the date, who locked you out, and what belongings remain inside.
3. File an application under Section 12 of the DV Act with a prayer for an interim residence order under Section 23. Magistrates can pass urgent orders restoring entry or restraining dispossession.
4. If the in-laws file a suit to evict you, take advice promptly; the DV Act right can be raised in that suit as well.

Frequently asked questions

The flat is in my father-in-law’s name. Can they still throw me out?

Not without due process. After Satish Chander Ahuja, an in-laws’ house where you lived with your husband can be a shared household. The court decides what order is fair in the circumstances.

My husband moved out and the landlord wants the flat back. What now?

The right does not override a genuine landlord’s rights indefinitely, but the court can direct the husband to arrange or pay for alternative accommodation.

I left after a fight. Have I lost the right?

No. Leaving because of violence or a reasonable cause does not end the right, as Prabha Tyagi makes clear.

Does this apply to live-in partners?

Yes, where the relationship was in the nature of marriage.

See also: how to file a domestic violence case in Mumbai, husband having an affair and domestic violence matters.

Consultations are by appointment. To fix a time, telephone +91 99301 50560 or send a message on WhatsApp.

This guide describes general law as understood in October 2026. It is not legal advice; the facts of each case matter, so take advice before acting.

Related guides

• Widowed Daughter-in-Law: Maintenance, Home and Property Rights