“I thought that if lokas existed at all, good women would surely go to one where men were not allowed so they could be finally free of male demands.”-These are the words of Panchali aka Draupadi in Mahabharata. This sentence clearly shows the plight of women in older days. From the time immemorial, women have been submissive to men. Practices like sati and child marriage were prevalent in a country where Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati are the three main goddesses of knowledge, money and power.

After independence, a wave of change saturated different classes of Indian culture and significantly amended their thoughts, propensities and traditions. One of the striking changes in Indian Social life is in the status of ladies. Ladies began leaving their draperies and started going to schools and universities and began asserting their rights yet they are being suppressed in the general public on account of an abhorrent practice called dowry which is responsible for all other violence against women like sexual slavery within marriage, infanticide, feticides, murders, suicides, demand of dowry, dowry-death, dowry burning etc.

Various laws have been established every now and then to raise the status of women yet the crime rate is still high: –

“Crimes against women increased 34 percent over the last four years to 2015, with cruelty by husbands and relatives being the most widely reported crime, according to the latest data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The rate of crime against women – defined as crimes reported divided by women population – has gone up from 41.7 to 53.9 between 2012 and 2015.”[1]

Sadly, awareness and education, has not helped to palliate the situation. In fact, families of people who are better educated, especially those with foreign degrees want the fattest gold laying goose and when the goose stop laying the eggs then they are tormented physically, mentally and economically sometimes to the verge that they take their own lives just to escape from the greedy clutches of the in-laws and husbands. Value of the girl has nothing to do in the finality of the marriage proposition; dowry is the first and final thought for a marriage union. One may characterize this custom as the unchallenged thought that a girl’s family is substandard to the boy’s family. Therefore, they should be on their best conduct and offer sumptuous “gifts” to satisfy the boy’s family. This principle is so deep-rooted in the minds of Indians, they either destroy themselves monetarily to pay the suitable cost of the picked groom, or annihilate the possibility of this money related weight by female feticide/infanticide. This exploitative arrangement of necessity for dowry, regard and subjugation, is one of the major contributing elements thwarting the development of the Indian culture where being a lady is still seen synonymous to being a burden.

Various laws have been brought in action to curb the menace but have turned out to be a sham. Dowry Prohibition Act has been a major failure as it doesn’t stop the problem of dowry but tells how to take dowry and go around it because of the loopholes it inhibits. For ex- s.6 of the act provides that the individual taking dowry needs to give it to the bride within 3 months of marriage which can be very easily exhorted from the girl’s family and later escaped from. However, with the ascent in modernization, training, monetary security and the freshly discovered freedom the radical women’s activist has made 498A and dowry prohibition laws a weapon in her reach. Numerous helpless husbands and relatives have progressed toward becoming casualties of their wrathful daughters-in-law. It is further contended by many that in most cases where one is accused under s.498-A usually turn out to be false, blackmailing endeavors by the wife and her relatives when faced with a strained marriage. The problem of abuse under s.498A, IPC and s.304B is increasing day by day.

The legitimacy or truth of assertions will be demonstrated later (at times decades later), however until at that point, it is viewed as that whatever a woman has affirmed is the total truth. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) information clearly states in most cases U/s.498A, the conviction rate is just 13%, and pendency stays as high as 89%. Cases are recorded and stay pending in the court for a long time. Yet, all the accused are to be captured when the case is documented, as this section of the IPC is non-bailable, and only a court can concede bail to them, only on producing sureties of required amount. This arrest makes s.498A the most startling among other family laws, and makes it a criminal case.

InSushil Kumar Sharma v. UOI & others[2], the Apex Court observed the problem and stated, “The object of these provisions is to prevent and control the menace of Dowry.  But, many instances have come to light where the complaints are not bona fide and have been filed with oblique motive…. Merely because these provisions are constitutional and intra vires, does not give a license to unscrupulous persons to wreck personal vendetta or unleash harassment… But, by misuse of the provisions a new legal terrorism can be unleashed. The provisions are intended to be used a shield and not an assassin’s weapon. “

The police have an exceptionally critical part to play, with its examination control. It unquestionably brings up an issue that, why, after their watchful examination, such a low number of accused are sentenced. But, they will undoubtedly do this, because of the law requirement, which considers that whatever a lady has expressed is obvious truth. They even can’t decline to enlist a FIR. Afterward, the court additionally takes a similar technique when the accused applies for a bail or a stay on the arrest. The courts deny bail on the basis of prima facie allegations confirming the probability of crime happening.

In the event that somebody needs to be guaranteed of arrest of accused, the assertions are to be surrounded such that the court effectively observes the likelihood that the crime has happened prima facie. The measure of harassment that the accused and his family confront is indescribable. The disgrace of being captured, the dread of the police, who regard the accused as though they have carried out a merciless crime, and the blackmail that occurs in the process makes numerous breaks and confer suicide.

The key feature of this horrendous dowry problem, however, is that givers detest the practice of dowry but they either silently accept it or even like it when it comes to receiving it. Therefore, measures to control the dowry problem must be brought out after scientifically studying the social background and the society. Enacting a law no doubt activates social conscience and gives some backing of the law to victims but we cannot eradicate the evil unless the people understand the viewpoint behind the law. However, some of the things that can be done are-

• Inter-cast and inter– religion marriage must be supported in public so girls would get an extensive variety of choices in finding an appropriate mate for marriage.
• Expenses of the marriage should be divided equally (50-50). While researching the author came across a website discussing the dowry customs of USA, although there is no such custom as of dowry but it is a common practice that the parents of bride spend on party and celebration and groom’s parents spends on furnishing the new house of newlyweds like furniture, car and other gifts (which is the original reason behind dowry and the same is the ideology behind tradition marriage). So similar provisions from other countries could be taken and practiced in India.
• Husband and wife must live in a separate home and not with in- laws. This will also help in reducing the demand of a male child over female child and promote equality. This will also help in reduction of cases of female feticide and infanticides.
• People should be made aware of their rights as common people still don’t know that a bride is supposed to maintain list of the presents given to her even though The Dowry Prohibition Rules, 1985 providing for maintenance of list by both bride and bridegroom was passed 32 years ago and so it will be injudicious to think that they are aware about IPC sections or other laws.
• Bride and her family must be strong enough to dial 100 or 1091/1090(women helpline no.) when someone ask for dowry.
• Women should be given formal educations so they don’t have to say yes to a man who ask for dowry.
• One should not attend such dowry or extravagant gifts have been demanded or given. The NGOs and women organizations can play an important role in this.
•    The police must raid marriages where dowry is being exchanged. This will also completely stop the 498A extortion racket.
• Court marriages should be the only legal form of marriage. This will avoid extravagant marriages. Or incentives should be given to people opting for court marriages.
• Investigations should be made in marriages of high officials like IAS and IPS because they are the ones with most demands.
• A separate helpline should be made for dowry so that people can report dowry exchanges as police and government officials cannot be present in every nook and corner.

Now coming to the problem of misuse –

• Take no gifts and give no gifts, and get this fact recorded by atleast four witnesses.
• After the wedding also, keep a record of all gifts given by groom or his family to his wife because she can drag him and his family to court for misappropriation of her stridhan.
• Parties should sign prenuptial agreements so as to protect one’s interests from false cases when a marriage goes down the hill. for e.g.-before the time of marriage mention your income and during divorce she will be given ¼ x monthly income x no. of years from marriage until the last day of marriage along with any dowry given in respect of marriage or anything else as the court may deem fit.
• Husband and wife must live in a separate home and not with in- laws so no case can be made against them.
• In court marriages, a dowry prohibition officer must be a witness and he must sign an affidavit that no dowry has taken place and later no complaint can be filed for dowry.

Also Read:

Women in Indian Prisons: Over Crowded jails, lack of sanitation, custodial incidents & shortage of doctors (Read Report)

Marital Rape: An Analysis

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The views expressed are solely of the author.