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‘Husband is not the master of woman’: India decriminalizes adultery

Click to play video: 'India’s top court lifts ban on women at prominent temple in latest of string of judgments'
India’s top court lifts ban on women at prominent temple in latest of string of judgments
WATCH: India's top court lifted a ban on women at one of the country's prominent Hindu temples on Friday in the latest of a flurry of liberal judgments, including decriminalizing gay sex and adultery – Sep 28, 2018

India’s Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has presided over a string of verdicts in recent weeks that grant more rights to women, gay couples and religious minorities as he prepares to retire from the bench next month.

Legal experts say that the rapid-fire judgments have the potential to upturn traditions in deeply-conservative Indian society.

On Thursday, Chief Justice Dipak Misra and the rest of the court struck down a 158-year-old law that held adultery as a criminal offence punishable by up to five years in prison, calling it unconstitutional and saying that “husband is not the master of woman.”

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Misra also led the bench in September to strike down a colonial-era law that made gay sex punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

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WATCH: India’s Supreme Court has delivered several major decisions recently, including one to legalize homosexuality

Click to play video: 'India’s top court legalizes gay sex in landmark ruling'
India’s top court legalizes gay sex in landmark ruling

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