The Delhi High Court held that a spouse is entitled to seek preservation and disclosure of call data records (CDR) and tower location details to substantiate allegations of adultery in matrimonial proceedings. The Court observed that such records are objective in nature and aid the adjudicatory process, rather than amounting to an impermissible intrusion into private life.
The case arose from a petition filed by a husband and his alleged companion challenging an April 2025 order of the Family Court, which had directed telecom operators and the concerned SHO to preserve the husband’s CDRs and the location details of the alleged paramour from January 2020 onwards. The wife, who married in 2002 and later sought divorce in 2023 on the grounds of adultery and cruelty, had argued that these records were crucial to corroborate her claims that her husband maintained an illicit relationship and travelled with another woman on multiple occasions.
Before the High Court, the alleged paramour contended that the family court’s order violated her fundamental right to privacy and was intended only to harass her. The husband also submitted that tower location and telephonic contacts could not, in themselves, establish adulterous conduct, stressing that his wife had not made out a prima facie case.
Rejecting these submissions, the Division Bench of Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar upheld the family court’s directions. The Court relied upon the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sharda v. Dharmpal, which recognised that limited intrusions into personal privacy are permissible in matrimonial matters if they are necessary to uncover the truth.
Emphasising that CDRs and tower data are neutral business records maintained by service providers, the Court clarified that their disclosure does not amount to a speculative “fishing enquiry” but provides corroborative circumstantial evidence consistent with the pleadings. The Bench underscored that such material, while not revealing the content of conversations, may nevertheless assist the court in determining the truth of allegations in sensitive matrimonial disputes.
Picture Source :
