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Shailesh (Businessman)     07 February 2017

We have a law which allows cops to arrest people w/o proof.

In India, there is a law called IPC -498-A which says that a wife can get her husband and her in-laws arrested or even convicted without evidence. The sole statement and complaint of the wife shall primarily hold as evidence and police can arrest without any evidence against the accused. 

Result of it was that many women started blackmailing their husbands and in-laws and many false cases of dowry were unearthed, some of them even managed to disprove them by phone and video recordings.

MY QUESTION IS:

What is your opinion about this baseless law? 

My opinion is that it is perhaps the world's first law where a judgment or decision is given without evidence and I am strongly against this law. It is a blot and disrespect to the legal system. 

Also, my opinion for advantages which it provides to women is that firstly, they don't have to struggle or take the trouble for collecting evidences for claiming their husbands or in-laws guilty, if their story is true. Secondly, if their story is not true, then it provides them an easy platform to extort money or accept other demands made by them from their husbands or in-laws. 

In December 2013, Union Minister Farooq Abdullah said that he is afraid even to talk to girls or women and decides not keep any female employee even if she is ugly because the sole complaint of the women/girl shall land him in jail. He also said angrily that why don't the media personnel send all men to jail.

Expressing exasperation over rampant misuse of Section 498A, a bench of Justices C K Prasad and P C Ghose said if police arrested the accused, the magistrate should weigh the preliminary evidence against the Section 41 checklist before allowing further detention.

Many lawyers have also suggested that employers should not keep lady secretaries as they can misuse the laws and get any guy arrested by lodging a false complaint without giving any evidence for their accusations.

What suggestions, solutions or alternatives do you have to this issue where women are not harassed for dowry and simultaneously it is assured that they do not misuse anti-dowry laws?

In my opinion, every marriage should be registered with an undertaking in stamp paper by both sides that none of the parties have given or received dowry in any form or exchanged gifts from either side.



Learning

 5 Replies

Sudhir Kumar, Advocate (Advocate)     17 February 2017

The law is not baseless. 

Sustained torture of women has necessaited this law.  The law is not sufficient enough to meet the threat No sufficient deterrance is created by this teechless lae in present form.  Women asre still tortured for dowry. Dowry is still shamelessly demanded. 

 

There is no law to fix the free meals availaling  guests from groom side (including near relative who are ceremonially honoured at the door of banquet hall with heavy cash and gifts) or thos e whom gifts are handed over as soon as bride enters the matrimonial house.  Attending such marriages where they know that excessive dowry is demanded.

 

There is no duty cast on the police to ensure and report to the court that the bride has been restored in matrimonial home inpite of  giving complaint.

 

 

There is no law to fix the priests (pandit, parson or maulana) who perform such marriages where they know that excessive dowry is demanded.

 

The crime is not cognisable andpolice can just take no action unless the victuim picks up courage to complaint and then too they have to refer the matter for mediation which just enahnces torture time of the victim.

 

There is no law to fix the neighbours (including Sarpanch/ councellor) who fail to inform the police when such torture exhists in their vicinity.

 

If such measures are adopted there may be shrp decline in dowry demand and toture and the law willbecome redunctant as in case of Sati Abolitin Law.

 

 

Sudhir Kumar, Advocate (Advocate)     17 February 2017

"In my opinion, every marriage should be registered with an undertaking in stamp paper by both sides that none of the parties have given or received dowry in any form or exchanged gifts from either side."

No use of such provision.  In a society when one can be paid to arrange money (over the months) to pay dowry beyond his capacity then such affidavit can also be orced from him.  Such affidavit cannot guaratee post marriae dowry related torture.

 

Law itself should be sodeterrent that none should pick up courage to demand dowry or agree to give dowry.

Example : Sati was abolished this way.

 

Sudhir Kumar, Advocate (Advocate)     17 February 2017

"they don't have to struggle or take the trouble for collecting evidences for claiming their husbands or in-laws guilty,"

 

In criminal matters no victim reporting any crime from petty theft to marder or terrorist is requuired to collect evidence.  Police is empowered and paid for the same by the state. Nothing special for 498a comkplainant.

Democratic Indian (n/a)     17 February 2017

No amount of laws or Police can solve social problems(evil) like dowry or moral crimes whose cause is deep rooted lack of ethics or morality in society. In order to resist evil one needs moral autonomy. Unfortunately most of the people(with some notable exceptions) of this Indian sub continent appear to lack moral autonomy and hence the lack of courage to say wrong is wrong and stop cooperating.

 

"The single most important quality needed to resist evil is moral autonomy. Moral autonomy is possible only through reflection, self-determination and the courage not to cooperate." Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) German philosopher

 

After watching the following video can anyone reflect in calmness and honestly tell who are the individuals or people who lack moral autonomy and courage to resist evil? Is it the reflection of what is morally going wrong in the rest of the Indian sub continent? What is the real evil? And what is the real reason behind lack of humanity or lack of accountability before law? Is there any shortage of laws or shortage of morality? These questions need deep reflection and courage to get honest answers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAXpflv9DJg

 

Here is another one where Swami Satyanand Maharaj is talking about Geeta, Mahabharta etc. The talk begins for about one minute in Punjabi, but later the entire conversation is in Hindi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XWaWb1rxrg The listeners of the video need to reflect and think deeply.

Sudhir Kumar, Advocate (Advocate)     18 February 2017

LAw can solve problem to great extent if the law was not teethless.  498a and DP Act  need to be more drastic.


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