Judge to Battered Wife: Stop Whining

A high court judge in India has received a slap on the wrist for telling an allegedly battered wife to keep quiet, go home, and take care of her husband, The Hindu reports. Last month, Justice Bhaktavatsala ruled on a domestic violence case involving a 28-year-old woman who claimed she was beaten regularly, reports the Daily Mail. He told her: "Your husband is doing good business. He will take care of you. Why are you still talking about his beatings?"

She declined to return home with her husband, so Bhaktavatsala suggested the alleged wife-beater treat his wife and son to lunch. The judge also criticized a single female lawyer, saying that "family matters should be argued only by married people, not spinsters." Now Bhaktavatsala has been stripped of all family cases, including guardianship and child custody—but insists he is misunderstood: "I have not permitted to beat wife," he says. "I asked couples to forget their past and live their life peacefully." (Another problem for women in India: threats of acid attacks.)