Ch 5-19. Section 36 – Other laws still apply, Section 37

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Section 36. Other laws still apply

36. Act not in derogation of any other law.-

The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in derogation of the provisions of any other law, for the time being in force.

Comment: This basically means that provisions of DV Act cannot override any other law in force. As we saw earlier, it is clearly given in various provisions of DV Act that a woman can claim both maintenance and other reliefs under DV Act even if she has similar reliefs ordered under other laws. So the importance of this provision is that it makes the DV Act as mainly a tool to get reliefs for a woman. For substantial and permanent reliefs like getting an actual decree of divorce based on alleged cruelty by husband, or getting permanent custody of child, etc; a woman will have to file a complaint under the personal laws. So DV Act is a nice Swiss army knife made for women to get quick reliefs, while they keep open the possibility of using bigger legal weapons in future using the existing personal/family laws.

Section 37. DV Rules

This section is about the process, procedures, and various actors (protection officer, service provider) who carry out the provisions of the DV Act before it reaches the magistrate, format of various forms like DIR (domestic incidence report), and also help with enforcing of the protection order.

The full section is given below for completeness. The DV Rules are given in Appendix C so one can refer to them for details about the procedures to be followed in filing of DIR etc.

37. Power of Central Government to make rules.-

(1) The Central Government may, by notification, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.

(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:-

(a) the qualifications and experience which a Protection Officer shall possess under sub-section (2) of section 8;

(b) the terms and conditions of service of the Protection Officers and the other officers subordinate to him, under sub-section (3) of section 8;

(c) the form and manner in which a domestic incident report may be made under clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 9;

(d) the form and the manner in which an application for protection order may be made to the Magistrate under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 9;

(e) the form in which a complaint is to be filed under clause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 9;

(f) the other duties to be performed by the Protection Officer under clause of sub-section (1) of section 9;

(g) the rules regulating registration of service providers under sub-section (1) of section 10;

(h) the form in which an application under sub-section (1) of section 12 seeking reliefs under this Act may be made and the particulars which such application shall contain under sub-section (3) of that section;

(i) the means of serving notices under sub-section (1) of section 13;

(j) the form of declaration of service of notice to be made by the Protection Officer under sub-section (2) of section 13;

(k) the qualifications and experience in counselling which a member of the service provider shall possess under sub-section (1) of section 14;

(l) the form in which an affidavit may be filed by the aggrieved person under sub-section (2) of section 23;

(m) any other matter which has to be, or may be, prescribed.

(3) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.

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Section 37. DV Rules

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