Alee Khan
A World Bank study has revealed that the dowry system in India’s villages has remained largely stable over the past few decades. But this social evil continues unabated. The researchers studied forty thousand marriages that took place in rural India from 1960 to 2008. They found that dowry was given in 95 percent of marriages. Let us tell you that this research is based on 17 states of India. In such a situation, it can be said that social evil like dowry system is a formidable problem which has taken a formidable form. It is imperative to deal with this social evil, otherwise the future of half the population is going to be bleak.
Dowry is the name given to the wealth which is given by the bride on the occasion of marriage to the groom party with the necessary condition of marriage. In fact, in ancient times, the father of the bride used to give some wealth and property to the groom in the form of Kanyadan along with the girl, which was given with his wish and in the form of affection. There was no compulsion of any kind in it. Gradually, over time, this practice took on a perverted form, which was named as dowry. In this, the father of the bride has to necessarily provide money or other things to the groom. Many times it has also been seen on the occasion of marriage that the bride’s side demands unnecessary money or expensive things etc. from the bride’s side in the marriage hall itself, which puts the bride’s side in financial difficulties. Dowry is that evil practice. Who has made the birth of a girl a curse.
The question is bound to arise in the mind of the common man that why is the government not taking any steps in the direction of prevention of this evil practice? Let us tell you that with the aim of ending the dowry system, an act was passed in 1961, which came out as the Dowry Prevention Act, 1961. But due to lack of awareness, this law could not help in stopping the dowry system. It will be called the misfortune of the country that today a large population of the country does not agree with this law. Explain that for proper investigation of crimes related to dowry system, it has been made a non-bailable offence. The government also made some amendments in 1986 with the aim of making the Dowry Prevention Act, 1961 more powerful. Under this Act, the person taking or giving dowry or abetting the taking or giving of dowry shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which shall not be less than five years, or with fine of not less than fifteen thousand rupees or the amount of dowry, whichever is higher, or with both. There is a provision to be given. A new article 304B has been inserted in the Indian Penal Code i.e. IPC, according to which if the girl died under unusual circumstances within seven years of marriage, the husband or his family members are liable to provide proof that Girl’s death is not dowry death. If they are found guilty of dowry death, the Act provides for punishment ranging from seven years to life imprisonment. There is also a provision for appointment of Dowry Prohibition Officer in the Act. Anti-dowry cell has also been established to effectively deal with dowry issues. Section 498A of the IPC also provides for punishment of up to three years to the guilty for torturing the wife for dowry on behalf of her husband or in-laws.
It has also emerged in the research of the World Bank that the religions which have been untouched by the dowry system are also showing their activism in dowry. Dowry transactions between Sikhs and Christians have increased tremendously in the last few years. However, dowry system is prevalent in all the major religions of India. In such a situation, it can be said that despite all the efforts, the dowry system continues unabated in India. This research has also found that the practice of dowry is increasing rapidly in Kerala, which has established its dominance in the path of sustainable development and progress. The spread of this evil practice in the Indian state of Kerala, which claims to have the most educated population, is indeed very worrying. When it comes to the ill-effects of dowry system, let us tell you that on an average, every one hour in the country, a woman is becoming a victim of death due to dowry related reasons. There has been a huge increase in such cases in the last few years. National Crime Records Bureau data has revealed that about ten thousand dowry murder cases are coming to the fore every year in the country. Today the ill effects of dowry system are coming out in many forms. Due to the dowry system, there is an increase in indebtedness, atrocities on women, encouragement of feticide and female killing in the society and mismatched marriages. In fact, the Indian matrimonial system has been polluted.
Our Parliament has passed the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence (including Dowry Demands) Act-2005 in 2005. In this act there is a provision to provide civil justice against domestic violence to women. Under this Act, the court has been empowered to give judicial protection to the aggrieved woman and to order monetary compensation to the guilty party. But today many lives are being ruined due to ignorance of this law. What is needed today is the dire need of the central and state governments to continuously increase the anti-dowry literacy among the people through Lok Adalats, radio broadcasts, television and newspapers. Along with this there is also a need to create social consciousness.
The author is a freelance writer and columnist from Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
