As is widely recognized violence against women is one of the most pervasive forms of human rights abuse in the world. Women and girls, in all societies, to a greater or lesser degree are subjected to physical, sexual and psychological violence. The violence cuts across lines of class, caste, religion, region, sexual orientation, ethnicity and culture. In early 1990s, WHO had prophetically declared, “Violence against women causes more deaths and disability than many diseases put together and violence against women is a common phenomenon in Indian society”.
The proportion of crimes committed against women towards total IPC crimes has increased continually and has reached 11.2 % during 2013. Every single day, 21 women die because of dowry in India. As Twenty-one dowry deaths are reported across the country every day, but the conviction rate is only 34.7 percent. Last year research by the Hindustan Times newspaper found there had been 15 dowry deaths in the Indian capital alone over the previous five years but not a single conviction.
During the last three decades, India has witnessed the emergence of three great social evils, namely:
(a) The dowry system
(b) The cruelty and harassment to women
(c) The resultant suicide.
The chapter XX-A consisting section 498-A has been engrafted in the Indian Penal Code, (45 of 1860) in the year 1983. It consists of only one section, namely, section 498 A, which makes cruelty to a wife by the husband or his relatives, an offence.
It endeavors to prevent torture to a married woman by her husband or by his relatives and to punish them for harassing or torturing the wife to coerce her or her relatives to concede unlawful demands of dowry. Until then, harassment of a wife by her husband or her in-laws was covered by the general provisions of the IPC dealing with assault, hurt, grievous hurt or homicide. The increasing violence against the women especially young, newly married women and growing incidents of bride-burning became a matter of concern to everyone. It was felt that the general offences already provided for the IPC were not adequate and stringent enough to deal with the atrocities against women.
Cruelty against women within the institution of marriage posted certain difficulties in matters of prosecuting the accused and proving their guilt. This was because, very often, women bear their sufferings in silence. Obtaining independent witness is also difficult because the violence against the wife is generally inflicted within the confines of the home, away from public gaze. Further, demand for dowry and harassment of women if they fail to meet the demands, may not always be in the form of direct assault on the body of the woman. The violence in the subtler forms but equally torturous, many a time driving the woman to take her own life.
In order to tackle this, it was felt by the Parliament that comprehensive legislative changes were required at three levels:
i. To define the substantive offence of cruelty to women by husbands and relatives of husbands;
ii. To introduce procedures which make investigation in cases of certain deaths of women mandatory;
iii. To bring changes in the Evidence Act, which will make prosecution and conviction of accused in cases of violence against women easier.
Accordingly, sections 498 A and 304 b were added to the IPC; create separate offences in respect of acts of cruelty to a woman by a husband and his relatives and dowry death respectively.
In 1983, to check cruelty to women by husbands and parents-in-law, rampant in an unprecedented scale in the country a new Chapter, XX-A, entitled: ‘Of cruelty by Husband or Relatives of Husband’ was added in the Penal Code. In addition, a consequential amendment to the Evidence Act was also made, shifting the burden of proof of innocence on the part of the accused as against prosecution in the case of abetment of suicide by a married woman and a wife’s death within a period of 7 years of marriage (sections 113 A and 113 B of Evidence Act, 1872). An idea of about the gravity of the problem can be had from the large number of reported cases of cruelty and torture by the National Record of Bureau during 1997 (36592), 1998 (41376) and 1999 (43823) respectively that demonstrate an increase of 5.9 per cent.
The objects of adding this chapter are to prevent torture to a married woman by her husband or by his relatives and to punish a husband and his relatives who torture and harass the wife with a view, to coerce her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demands of dowry or to drive her to commit suicide. The object of section 498-A of Indian Penal Code was to prevent torture to a woman by her husband or his relatives in connection with demand of dowry.
It is not possible for the legislature to enumerate all acts amounting to cruelty or to put cruel conduct into any strait jacket formula. The term ‘cruelty’ has deliberately been left undefined by the statute. This is to enable the courts to adapt the meaning to suit changing societal values and mores. The social standing and background of parties, their economic situation, and other relevant factors will all have to be taken into consideration by the courts in each individual case, to decide whether an act will amount to cruelty. The explanation to s. 498 A clarifies what amounts to cruelty for the purposes of s. 498 A:-
(a) any willful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (whether mental or physical) of the woman; or
(b) harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view to coercing her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or any person related to her to meet such demand.
‘Cruelty’ includes both mental and physical cruelty. Contours and effects of ‘cruelty’ depend upon a number of factors such as sensitivity of the individual victim concerned the social background, the environment, education, etc. Abnormal behavior , continuous taunting or teasing; keeping a concubine and bringing up her child by the husband, or pressing for obtaining a consent of the first wife for the second marriage, depriving his wife and children from elementary means of subsistence and spending his earning on gambling and other vices, frequent false attack on her chastity, depending upon circumstances, for example, amount to cruelty. ‘Cruelty’ postulates such a treatment that causes reasonable apprehension in the mind of the wife that her living with her husband will be harmful and injurious to her life. Mental cruelty varies from person to person depending on the intensity of the sensitivity and degree of courage or endurance to withstand such mental cruelty. Nevertheless, in any event it needs to prove that the willful act or conduct of the husband or his relatives has been a proximate cause for cruelty.
In a case of ‘cruelty’ as contemplated under s. 498-A, it is important to bear in mind that what is provided for is ‘cruelty’ which takes place within the institution of marriage. It is however to note that every cruelty or harassment does not attract the provision of s. 498 A. Cruelty or harassment (caused with a view to meeting dowry demand) to a married woman which only is likely to drive her to commit suicide or to cause grave injury to life or limb or health, whether mental or physical, comes within the ambit of s. 498 A, IPC.
Another consequence of the proposition that cruelty is a continuous offence is that a wife can initiate proceedings against her husband and his relatives in any courts in which local jurisdiction she was subjected to cruelty over a period of time.
It was held by the court in a case, that cruelty is a common essential in offences under both the sections 304-B and 498-A of the Indian Penal Code. The two sections are not mutually inclusive but both are distinct offences and a person acquitted under section 304-B for the offence of dowry death can be convicted for an offence under section 498-A of the IPC. The meaning of cruelty is given in explanation to section 498-A Section 304-B does not contain its meaning but the meaning of cruelty or harassment as given in section 498-A applies in section 304-B as well. Under section 498-A of the IPC cruelty by itself amounts to an offence whereas under section 304-B the offence is that of dowry death and the death must have occurred within seven years of marriage. But no period is mentioned in section 498-A.
The term relative must assign a meaning as is commonly understood. Ordinarily it would include father, mother, husband or wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, nephew, niece, grandson or granddaughter of an individual or the spouse of any person. The meaning of the word ‘relative’ would depend upon the nature of the statute. It principally includes a person related by blood, marriage or adoption. By no stretch of imagination a girl friend or even concubine of the husband in an etymological sense would be a ‘relative’. Foster sister is not ‘Relative’ within the meaning of section 498 A, IPC to fix liability for causing cruelty against the complaint wife.
Cruelty by Husband or Relatives of Husband is an essential ingredient for the offence defined under section 498 A. The offence under section 498 A is restricted to only acts of commission or omission done by the husband or his relatives. The word ‘Relative’ has not been defined. But a perusal of the case law reveals that generally, the parents, the sisters and brothers of the husband have been prosecuted under this section. A person who is not a relative, but a friend, however close he is to the family of the husband, cannot be prosecuted under this section. As the meaning of the term ‘relative’ and cruelty has been defined above in the context of section 498 A of the Indian Penal Code. The punishment for the section 498 A of IPC (45 of 1860) is imprisonment for a term which may extent to three years and shall also be liable to fine.
Conclusion
The chapter XX-A consisting section 498-A has been engrafted in the Indian Penal Code, (45 of 1860) in the year 1983. It consists of only one section, namely, section 498 A, which makes cruelty to a wife by the husband or his relatives, an offence. Section 498 A has to be seen in the context of violence and impairment of women’s liberty and dignity within the matrimonial fold.It endeavors to prevent torture to a married woman by her husband or by his relatives and to punish them for harassing or torturing the wife to coerce her or her relatives to concede unlawful demands of dowry. This section punishes a husband of a woman or any relative of the husband subjecting her to cruelty. It says that whoever, being either the husband of a woman or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term extending up to three years and shall also be liable to fine. The section contemplates that the offender must be either the husband of a woman or a relative of his. The offender must subject such woman to cruelty. The concept of cruelty under this section has a two-fold dimension; first, it is a willful conduct of such a nature as to drive a woman to such a desperate situation as to commit suicide or grave injury or danger to life, limb or physical or mental health of the woman, and secondly, it is a harassment of the woman with a view to coerce either her or any person related to her to meet unlawful demand for any property or valuable security or is on account of she or her relative having failed to meet such demand. Cruelty by Husband or Relatives of Husband is an essential ingredient for the offence defined under section 498 A.
With the rise in modernization, education, financial security and the new found independence the radical feminist has made 498 A a weapon in her hands. Many a hapless husbands and in laws have become victims of their vengeful daughter-in-laws. Most cases where Sec 498 A is invoked turn out to be false (as repeatedly accepted by High Courts and Supreme Court in India) as they are mere blackmail attempts by the wife (or her close relatives) when faced with a strained marriage. In most cases 498 A complaint is followed by the demand of huge amount of money (extortion) to settle the case out of the court.
