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Do matrimonial laws REALLY FAVOR WOMEN?

Page no : 7

Arup (UNEMPLOYED)     29 July 2010

THE ABOVE IS FOR MR A JAISWAL FOR HIS POSTINGS IN THIS THREAD.

Arup (UNEMPLOYED)     29 July 2010

PLEASE GO THROUGH THE BELLOW THREAD

Forum Home > Family Law > Court fined a woman for false impotancy allegation !  




(Guest)

@ Ashutosh,


I have few comments on your above views on ground realities.


The reality in Indian Society today is that good women’s are not able to get married to Indian men, you ever wondered why ? It is not that good Indian men are not there in same society but Indian men are getting afraid of even getting married because of these gender biased Laws, afraid to put their females in their family in the mercy of prime facie one sided laws of the ‘good’ Indian wife they bring in.


You roam around in your society and ask women of marriageable age why not yet married and then understand what is the real picture.


If all Indian men are b*st*rds and dowry seekers so to speak (ground realities as you say) as propagated one sided then what is going to happen to all Indian women in days to come including your and mine mother and sisters. Think aloud and let us talk of groupies and depicting women in wrong picture then. The incidences reported are of effects of gender biased Laws. If you are so sure that all women are good then why only one S. 24 HMA is there for Indian men to use and why more than half a dozen laws there to protect the same women in reality it should have been equal laws for both genders is it not so to speak - is this the ground reality?


This is a Legal Family law Forum not emotional and sentiments based Legal Family Forum to be swept away with men's and or women's sentiments and emotions to divert attention from ground issues. In Law there is no place for such absurdities. If people are discussing women are bad here in a Law Forum then men also have right to discuss women are bad too and you are discussing opposite of all that which is emotions and sentiments to divert the attention from hard core Legal subjects and then quoting Omaba and Shakespeare who are not even Indian men (husbands).Then pops examples of Raja Rammohan Roy who was and is the only real Indian men that India ever produced and after him all Indian men became b*st*rds and dowry seekers and murderers for rest of Indian wife’s. You will never quote what prompted him to take such social causes and what was the society then and is that society strata still applicable to modern day Urban India. How many Sati burning you hear today. One news pops in Aaj Tak in once a while and all Indian men are grouped and said they burnt a women leave aside what actually happened and what is the society in that village.  


Then you say society is going on as usual ! How society is going on my friend tell me, you talk to your married men friends and come back and tell us how society is going on as usual.


You cry of Khaps whereas Khaps society is also going on well so to speak it is other thing that only few killings na so what big deal there why have double standards there but here everything Ok groups of men who are b*st*rds and dowry seekers creating wrong statistics what is this ?.


I am not self centered nor I am jealous of a women rising to moon let her go to Jupitar even and if she wants all my money and support I will give to her even my last drop but Mars and Venus will always be different and two - three illustrations I already gave in various posts to make them lighter re-read them and they were Indian illustrations not Shakespeare and Omaba and then say men propagate wrong impressions.


Then someone brings in Mahabharata and Ramayana – Draupadi and Sita. Ask same Indian women in general in society are all of them Sita and Draupadi today you will be shocked to hear their responses. If Indian women are Sita and Draupadi then they do not need a law for them ! Did Draupadi / Sita needed a Law created for women of those mythological era ! So which general society we talking here? And then why quote these epics and make a Indian women behave like Sita and Draupadi had it been the case there was no need for dozens of women Laws for their protection. A society does not grow one sided that you will have all Draupadis and Sitas from generations upon generations and other side only Indian Ravans. So why Indian women want to marry is the que. Forget why Indian men marry. Announce via your post to all Indian women readers not to marry automatically all these stories of centuries of so called oppressions will stop. Then we will have various versions of Rape Laws only……


Lawyers are professionals and if they like they can defend to their last breadth only a Indian women case why should I care and or comment on a professionals choice. Afterall a women's single case brings in 4 more cases in the kitty so the business sense with Indian women is better than taking bl**dy one single case of S. 24 HMA of a Indian man (that also are rare) but I donot have any issue with it but don't justify that I am for Indian women because she is downtrodden. This Indra is asking for "reservation" in World Economic Summit it is good but even if reservation is allowed what more women want Ok I say have everything now what , they will still be confused and say men are b*st*rds and dowry seekers and few people will change the subject and bring it to emotions and sentiments level because Indians (both genders) need a slope and that slope flows on sentiments and emotions. which sells which becomes news which is passed from generations to generations of Indian women saying Indian men including your father / brother are b*st*rds and dowry seekers is this the reality so to speak if you talking here of ground reality making a Legal Forum emotional and sentiments based and divert the attentions Sir ?


Correct picture comes from statistics - correct picture comes from cases won for women by their Lawyers fighting for women only cases why they donot protect their own client and give her relief of conviction from that b*st*rd and dowry seeker husband instead of at the end of the day going in for settlement with hefty amounts from a b*st*rd and dowry seeker husband, where is Indian women’s pride then? Where is the sympathy wave now ! You want statistics I will give you then let us talk of Indian society in general then. In gender war we loose sense and sensibilities and get washed away with a slope created on the spur which is why these posts are like another epic made and for people like us and the real sufferers from wither gender remains lost which side to pick as both have suffered in their respective way.  Project that Sir.


Now enjoy two thank you icon click for you and one thank you icon click for me but the question will remain the same unless sentiments and emotions are removed form such posts.


Amen..........................

Rgds.

Parth Chandra (none)     29 July 2010

@Ashutosh,

Can you please put your very intelligent mind on below question and enlight us with your knowledge?

1) Do you justify wife filing dowry harrasement, physical & mental torture for dowry etc. cases on husband and his family over other issues of married life (You may call it oppression,suprression etc.)?

2) If your wife/daughter in law file such cases against men and women (including unmarried sisters) of your family without descrimination then would you be willing to take her back?

3) In era of Ramayan & Mahabharata...there was a precedence of joint family...how many wife would like a joint family in today's ground reality?

4) Do you have any statistics on how many joint family have been broken (not talking about divorce-nop but joint family) because of today's wifes?

5) Sita & Draupadi were devi's, can you find some statistics on how many today's women can claim that they are as pure as those devi's (I am not asking to any Man as no men here is giving example of any god)?

I am leaving for the day and need to catch my office bus otherwise would have asked some more stupid questions so that your can through more light and enlight us with you intelligence.


Moreover, I did not reply since my last post as someone very respected to me in this forum asked me to conclude my posting...but could not stop my self as this thread continued otherwise would have replied to Aishwarya as well as she is running away from so call today's ground reality and dragging this discussion into sentiments and blah blah blah.

1 Like

Arup (UNEMPLOYED)     30 July 2010

DEAR MR ASHUTOSH,

THE THREAD QUESTION IS - DO MATRIMONIAL LAWS REALLY FAVOUR WOMEN, ON THE OTHERHAND THE QUESTION IS WHETHER THE INDIAN MATRIMONIAL LAWS BIASED IN FAVOUR OF WOMEN?

NONE OF US INCLUDING ME GIVE ANSWERS WHY WE WILL SAY IT - BIASED OR UNBIASED.

 

ACTUALLY THIS REQUERES AN ANALISYS OF MATRIMONIAL LAWS UNDER ART 15(1) & (3) OF COI.


(Guest)

Below is some facts regarding Indian Men’s silent suffering, here I have mentioned some start-up articles trying to draw equal attention of society that it is not only the women who are sufferers but Men too suffer. This may also help in forming the less spoken view on Men’s genuine concern. Men in modern India are perceived to initiate violence, Sexual abuse, mental torture, monetary abuse and are the worst specieis both at home and outside home which is a myth. Their cry also cannot be overlooked.

  1. "SIFF - About Us". www.saveindianfamily.org. https://www.saveindianfamily.org/about-us.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  2. "Wife harassing you? Call for help". IBN. 2006-11-29. https://ibnlive.in.com/news/a-helpline-for-harassed-hubbies/27345-3.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  3. Bhattacharya, Chandrima S. (2006-10-30). "What are men scared of?". The Telegraph, Calcutta. https://www.telegraphindia.com/1061030/asp/calcutta/story_6933770.asp. Retrieved 2007-01-27. 
  4. Ramesh, Randeep (December 13, 2007). "Dowry law making us the victims, says India's men's movement". The Guardian. https://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/dec/13/india.randeepramesh1. Retrieved 2008-11-16. 
  5. Aron, Sunita (2007-01-13). "Now, an all male fightclub". Hindustan Times. https://147.208.132.202/news/181_1899255,0008.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-22. 
  6. Das, Radhika (June 8, 2007). "Is the law biased against men?". Times of India. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-2109446,prtpage-1.cms. Retrieved 2008-11-16. 
  7. Tanna, Ketan (2006-12-25). "Tortured husband's union: The people in this group had just two choices. Either become henpecked or handcuffed". Times of India. https://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=Q0FQLzIwMDYvMTIvMjUjQXIwMTAwMA==&Mode=HTML&Locale=english-skin-custom. Retrieved 2007-02-05. 
  8. George, Daniel (September 6, 2009). "Moms-in-law of the world unite..". TOI. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Moms-in-law-of-the-world-unite/articleshow/4977409.cms. Retrieved 2009-12-08. 
  9. Sengupta, Sudipta (October 31, 2009). "Now, a forum for 'tortured' husbands". TOI. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Now-a-forum-for-tortured-husbands/articleshow/5182345.cms. Retrieved 2009-12-08. 
  10. "SIFF - Helplines". www.saveindianfamily.org. https://www.saveindianfamily.org/contact-us/activists.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  11. Karnad, Raghu (2007-12-03). "Now, Is That Malevolence?". Outlook magazine. https://www.savefamily.org/index.php?view=article&id=134%3Aoutlooks-features-story-on-save-indian-family-by-raghu-karnad&Itemid=50&option=com_content. Retrieved 2007-12-12. 
  12. Singh, Jangveer (2006-11-26). "Sour dates in India’s Silicon Valley". Tribune News Service. https://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20061126/main8.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-27. 
  13. Gupta, Monobina (2006-10-27). "Malevolence for women’s law - Men go to PM against female ‘terrorist activity’". The Telegraph, Calcutta. https://www.telegraphindia.com/1061027/asp/frontpage/story_6923154.asp. Retrieved 2007-01-27. 
  14. "Plea to check misuse of anti-dowry law". The Hindu. 4 April 2008. https://www.hindu.com/2008/04/04/stories/2008040458530200.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-16. 
  15. Sandhu, Veena (2006-11-07). "Men new "victims" of domestic violence". Hindustan Times. 
  16. Ash, Lucy (2003-07-16). "India's dowry deaths". BBC News. https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/3071963.stm. Retrieved 2007-01-27. 
  17. Chopra, Anuj (March 8, 2007). "New protection against domestic violence in India". Christian Science Monitor. https://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0308/p12s02-wosc.html?page=2. Retrieved 2008-11-08. 
  18. Dhillon, Amrit (December 24, 2007). "Men say wives use India's pro-women laws to torment them". The Age. https://www.theage.com.au/news/world/men-say-wives-use-indias-prowomen-laws-to-torment-them/2007/12/23/1198344884127.html. Retrieved 2008-11-08. 
  19. "On Independence Day, 'harassed husbands' to demand 'freedom'". Deccan Herald. https://www.deccanherald.com/content/17764/on-independence-day-harassed-husbands.html. Retrieved 2009-12-20. 

 

Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist)     30 July 2010

The laws which are alleged to favour women, has failed in its’ objective, which was meant to protect them from all sort of ills. These laws can be compared with our democracy, in which real power centre are people but the reality is otherwise, where all people are blamed for wrong section of candidates/Party.

Even these laws are being used as a tool to defame entire women folk, where most of the women are not even aware of these acts/laws. Mostly women used to be ignorant about their rights and most of them do not use due to our social stigma or unsupportive conditions/environment, where they may get branded as rebel. They have been made as “devi” and a ‘devi’ is not supposed to go out of the traditional “Lakshman Rekha”.

Our court procedures are harsh, rough and needs lot of hardship, cunning/clever move or approach, where they (women) fail miserably. Even dragging them to the court and going thro’ its procedure itself amount to cruelty.

We all know how legal battle is being fought at courts. Which section of IPC attracts on charge of abuse and slapping? So, how legally it can be fought? In some cases of divorce this quotes prevails "A lawyer is never entirely comfortable with a friendly divorce, anymore than a good mortician wants to finish his job and then have the patient sit up on the table." Jean Kerr

In order to live with dignity women must learn to be bold/offensive, financially independent, to safeguard their invaluable right and to protect themselves from vultures/predators present in their society.

Rani Jethmalani, a noted lawyer at the Indian Supreme Court, in her book "Kali's Yug"1 (=the era of Goddess Kali) said about empowering women in India:

 

"It is possible through the revival of an energized feminine principle symbolized by Kali -- the most significant Goddess in the Hindu pantheon. Kali in the non-Sanskritic personification -- ethically dynamic and control-free.  Kali -- autonomous and active and not defined by male control as she is depicted in later mythological texts by her "spousification" with her consort Shiva.  Kali who challenges the Civilized order of Dharma and the status quo."

 

Below is a painting, which shows Lord Krishna at Goddesss Radharani's feet.

I think if women haters see this, they may start abusing and stop worshipping Lord Krishna also.

Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist)     30 July 2010

Dowry deaths in India

Dowry deaths and the ineffective enforcement of laws protecting women of India.

For many years women worldwide have struggled for equality and fair treatment. Although in the Middle East, this plight is met with vast indifference. Violence is very rampant and women are treated quite submissively. Mostly, a woman's importance in this part of the world is based upon her ability to produce sons and provide handsome dowries. For some time now news reports have been bringing to light the crime of killing new brides for their dowry. For these trapped women, it is just another way for empowered males to exert their superiority and power.

There are arguments that the actual acts of "dowry death" have not increased as suspected, just the act of reporting them. As people's rights are promoted and enforced, cries for help seem to increase tri-fold. With our free, opinionated upbringings, it is difficult for us to understand their position. Words of change are not enough, for these people need to learn another whole way of thinking. This type of alteration is very slow to happen, which is unfortunate for the women in this position.

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In these areas, women's roles are strongly implied by the men and almost always center in and around the home. Their sole function is childbearing and rearing, and they seldom have any social function outside the home. Even in poorer areas where a woman may need to contribute by working labor, no form of payment is ever involved. Having to contribute in this way offers no independence or community standing for these women, thus the difference between their social status and ours.

The actual giving of a dowry has been prohibited since 1961, although the charge can easily be avoided by offering it as a gift, not compensation. To the people receiving the dowry, there is great importance behind its meaning. Not for religious or sentimental reasons, but strictly for status and monetary greed. Many a bride has suffered abuse or worse from an unsatisfied groom and his family. Poor families are often at the mercy of the groom to be and because of this stress, female infanticide is a common occurrence. The dowry is actually a tool used for attracting males of high status, or as a bribe from parents fearing an unwed daughter.

Unfortunately there are few reasons for this type of crime, and the justification for it is definitely unsavory. Monetary greed is a major issue, which encourages a groom and his family to consider the possibility of further dowries from multiple brides. Logically to these people, the death of one bride opens the door to receive another.

Due to the importance of virginity at the time of marriage, grooms can easily justify their discontent with their bride by pleading dishonor or promiscuity. This type of justification is supposedly not supported by law, even though punishment for these crimes goes unnoticed or covered up. In these areas, dishonor holds such shame within the community that families have been known to murder their own children to make an example of them.

Death of these brides is sometimes unavoidable, or so it seems to friends and family. This is solely because of the lack of help and enforcement of the laws regarding these crimes. "The social stigma attached to unmarried women and divorced women are so strong that most parents would rather see their daughter’s dead then to have them get a divorce and return permanently to the parental home". The bride-murderer may also be offered subsequent siblings by the dead girl's family because the siblings are often black marked and difficult to marry off. This alone is evidence of the utter helplessness of these families and their children.

There are campaigns and laws designed to help these women, although they are rarely enforced. Even when a perpetrator is charged, many times it drags on forever and evidence is lost and witnesses forget.

According to UNICEF "more than 6000 bride burnings or other deaths were reported in 1997". These deaths are usually explained away as accidental home fires or explosions. Scant time is spent on investigating these events and the law doesn't appear to be interested in combating the problem.

The gender inequality is a contributing factor to the lack of action and until a time when these women are regarded as more then baby-making machines there will be little change. Definitely some of these murderers are punished, although the punishment is insulting to the victims’ families. Even more insulting are traditions that drive families and loved ones to murder baby girls and stand back while their young daughters are killed. Hopefully with effective promotion of public awareness, we can help alleviate this type of occurrence in the future.

 

 

Source : https://www.essortment.com/all/dowrydeathsind_rgcg.htm

   

Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist)     30 July 2010

Source: World Socialist Web Site (wsws.org) at link below

https://www.wsws.org/articles/2001/jul2001/ind-j04.shtml

Published by the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI)

Rising number of dowry deaths in India

By Amanda Hitchcock
4 July 2001

May 27: Young housewife burnt alive for dowry

LUCKNOW: For nineteen-year-old Rinki dreams of a happily married life was never to be. Barely a month after her marriage, she was allegedly tortured and then set ablaze by her in-laws for dowry in Indiranagar in the small hours of Saturday. Daughter of late Gyan Chand, a fish contractor who expired a year ago, Rinki was married to Anil on April 19... However, soon after the marriage, Balakram [Anil’s father] demanded a colour television instead of a black and white one and a motorcycle as well. When Rinki’s mother failed to meet their demands, the teenage housewife was subjected to severe physical torture, allegedly by her husband and mother-in-law... On Saturday morning she [her mother] was informed that Rinki was charred to death when a kerosene lamp accidentally fell on her and her clothes caught fire. However, prima-facie it appeared that the victim was first attacked as her teeth were found broken. Injuries were also apparent on her wrist and chest.

June 7: Woman ends life due to dowry harassment

HAVERI: Dowry harassment claimed yet another life here recently. Jyoti, daughter of Chandrashekhar Byadagi, married to Ajjappa Siddappa Kaginelle in Guttal village (Haveri taluk) had taken her life after being allegedly harassed by her husband Ajjappa, mother-in-law Kotravva, sister-in-law Nagavva and father-in-law Siddappa for more dowry, the police said. Police said that the harassment compelled her to consume poison... The Guttal police have arrested her husband and father-in-law.

June 7: Body found floating

HAVERI: The police said that a woman’s body was found floating in a well at Tilawalli (Hanagal taluk) near here... The deceased has been identified as Akhilabanu Yadawad (26). The police said that Akhilabanu was married to Abdul Razaksab Yadawad five years ago. In spite of dowry being given, her husband and his family tortured her to bring some more dowry. Her father, Abdulrope Pyati in his complaint, alleged that she was killed by them. Her husband and his two brothers have been arrested, the police added.

These three chilling reports from the Times of India are typical of the many accounts of dowry-related deaths that take place in the country every year. One cannot help but be struck by the offhand way in which a young woman’s life and death is summed up, matter of factly, without any undue cause for alarm or probing of the causes. It is much as one would report a traffic accident or the death of a cancer patient—tragic certainly, but such things are to be expected.

The character of the articles points to the fact that the harassment, beating and in some cases murder of women over dowry is both common and commonly ignored or even tacitly condoned in official circles—by the police, the courts, politicians and media. These crimes are not isolated to particular groups, social strata, geographical regions or even religions. Moreover, they appear to be on the rise.

According to an article in Time magazine, deaths in India related to dowry demands have increase 15-fold since the mid-1980s from 400 a year to around 5,800 a year by the middle of the 1990s. Some commentators claim that the rising number simply indicates that more cases are being reported as a result of increased activity of women’s organizations. Others, however, insist that the incidence of dowry-related deaths has increased.

An accurate picture is difficult to obtain, as statistics are varied and contradictory. In 1995, the National Crime Bureau of the Government of India reported about 6,000 dowry deaths every year. A more recent police report stated that dowry deaths had risen by 170 percent in the decade to 1997. All of these official figures are considered to be gross understatements of the real situation. Unofficial estimates cited in a 1999 article by Himendra Thakur “Are our sisters and daughters for sale?” put the number of deaths at 25,000 women a year, with many more left maimed and scarred as a result of attempts on their lives.

Some of the reasons for the under-reporting are obvious. As in other countries, women are reluctant to report threats and abuse to the police for fear of retaliation against themselves and their families. But in India there is an added disincentive. Any attempt to seek police involvement in disputes over dowry transactions may result in members of the woman’s own family being subject to criminal proceedings and potentially imprisoned. Moreover, police action is unlikely to stop the demands for dowry payments.

The anti-dowry laws in India were enacted in 1961 but both parties to the dowry—the families of the husband and wife—are criminalized. The laws themselves have done nothing to halt dowry transactions and the violence that is often associated with them. Police and the courts are notorious for turning a blind eye to cases of violence against women and dowry associated deaths. It was not until 1983 that domestic violence became punishable by law.

Many of the victims are burnt to death—they are doused in kerosene and set light to. Routinely the in-laws claim that what happened was simply an accident. The kerosene stoves used in many poorer households are dangerous. When evidence of foul play is too obvious to ignore, the story changes to suicide—the wife, it is said, could not adjust to new family life and subsequently killed herself.

Research done in the late 1990s by Vimochana, a women’s group in the southern city of Bangalore, revealed that many deaths are quickly written off by police. The police record of interview with the dying woman—often taken with her husband and relatives present—is often the sole consideration in determining whether an investigation should proceed or not. As Vimochana was able to demonstrate, what a victim will say in a state of shock and under threat from her husband’s relatives will often change markedly in later interviews.

Of the 1,133 cases of “unnatural deaths” of women in Bangalore in 1997, only 157 were treated as murder while 546 were categorized as “suicides” and 430 as “accidents”. But as Vimochana activist V. Gowramma explained: “We found that of 550 cases reported between January and September 1997, 71 percent were closed as ‘kitchen/cooking accidents’ and ‘stove-bursts’ after investigations under section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedures.” The fact that a large proportion of the victims were daughters-in-law was either ignored or treated as a coincidence by police.

Figures cited in Frontline indicate what can be expected in court, even in cases where murder charges are laid. In August 1998, there were 1,600 cases pending in the only special court in Bangalore dealing with allegations of violence against women. In the same year three new courts were set up to deal with the large backlog but cases were still expected to take six to seven years to complete. Prosecution rates are low. Frontline reported the results of one court: “Of the 730 cases pending in his court at the end of 1998, 58 resulted in acquittals and only 11 in convictions. At the end of June 1999, out of 381 cases pending, 51 resulted in acquittals and only eight in convictions.”

Marriage as a financial transaction

Young married women are particularly vulnerable. By custom they go to live in the house of their husband’s family following the wedding. The marriage is frequently arranged, often in response to advertisements in newspapers. Issues of status, caste and religion may come into the decision, but money is nevertheless central to the transactions between the families of the bride and groom.

The wife is often seen as a servant, or if she works, a source of income, but has no special relationship with the members of her new household and therefore no base of support. Some 40 percent of women are married before the legal age of 18. Illiteracy among women is high, in some rural areas up to 63 percent. As a result they are isolated and often in no position to assert themselves.

Demands for dowry can go on for years. Religious ceremonies and the birth of children often become the occasions for further requests for money or goods. The inability of the bride’s family to comply with these demands often leads to the daughter-in-law being treated as a pariah and subject to abuse. In the worst cases, wives are simply killed to make way for a new financial transaction—that is, another marriage.

A recent survey of 10,000 Indian women conducted by India’s Health Ministry found that more than half of those interviewed considered violence to be a normal part of married life—the most common cause being the failure to perform domestic duties up to the expectations of their husband’s family.

The underlying causes for violence connected to dowry are undoubtedly complex. While the dowry has roots in traditional Indian society, the reasons for prevalence of dowry-associated deaths have comparatively recent origins.

Traditionally a dowry entitled a woman to be a full member of the husband’s family and allowed her to enter the marital home with her own wealth. It was seen as a substitute for inheritance, offering some security to the wife. But under the pressures of cash economy introduced under British colonial rule, the dowry like many of the structures of pre-capitalist India was profoundly transformed.

Historian Veena Oldenburg in an essay entitled “Dowry Murders in India: A Preliminary Examination of the Historical Evidence” commented that the old customs of dowry had been perverted “from a strongly spun safety net twist into a deadly noose”. Under the burden of heavy land taxes, peasant families were inevitably compelled to find cash where they could or lose their land. As a result the dowry increasingly came to be seen as a vital source of income for the husband’s family.

Oldenburg explains: “The will to obtain large dowries from the family of daughters-in-law, to demand more in cash, gold and other liquid assets, becomes vivid after leafing through pages of official reports that dutifully record the effects of indebtedness, foreclosures, barren plots and cattle dying for lack of fodder. The voluntary aspects of dowry, its meaning as a mark of love for the daughter, gradually evaporate. Dowry becomes dreaded payments on demand that accompany and follow the marriage of a daughter.”

What Oldenburg explains about the impact of money relations on dowry is underscored by the fact that dowry did not wither away in India in the 20th century but took on new forms. Dowry and dowry-related violence is not confined to rural areas or to the poor, or even just to adherents of the Hindu religion. Under the impact of capitalism, the old custom has been transformed into a vital source of income for families desperate to meet pressing social needs.

A number of studies have shown that the lower ranks of the middle class are particularly prone. According to the Institute of Development and Communication, “The quantum of dowry exchange may still be greater among the middle classes, but 85 percent of dowry death and 80 percent of dowry harassment occurs in the middle and lower strata.” Statistics produced by Vimochana in Bangalore show that 90 percent of the cases of dowry violence involve women from poorer families, who are unable to meet dowry demands.

There is a definite market in India for brides and grooms. Newspapers are filled with pages of women seeking husbands and men advertising their eligibility and social prowess, usually using their caste as a bargaining chip. A “good” marriage is often seen by the wife’s family as a means to advance up the social ladder. But the catch is that there is a price to be paid in the form of a dowry. If for any reason that dowry arrangements cannot be met then it is the young woman who suffers.

One critic, Annuppa Caleekal, commented on the rising levels of dowry, particularly during the last decade. “The price of the Indian groom astronomically increased and was based on his qualifications, profession and income. Doctors, charted accountants and engineers even prior to graduation develop the divine right to expect a ‘fat’ dowry as they become the most sought after cream of the graduating and educated dowry league.”

The other side of the dowry equation is that daughters are inevitably regarded as an unwelcome burden, compounding the already oppressed position of women in Indian society. There is a high incidence of gender-based abortions—almost two million female babies a year. One article noted the particularly crass billboard advertisements in Bombay encouraging pregnant women to spend 500 rupees on a gender test to “save” a potential 50,000 rupees on dowry in the future. According to the UN Population Fund report for the year 2000, female infanticide has also increased dramatically over the past decade and infant mortality rates are 40 percent higher for girl babies than boys.

Critics of the dowry system point to the fact that the situation has worsened in the 1990s. As the Indian economy has been opened up for international investment, the gulf between rich and poor widened and so did the economic uncertainty facing the majority of people including the relatively well-off. It was a recipe for sharp tensions that have led to the worsening of a number of social problems.

One commentator Zenia Wadhwani noted: “At a time when India is enjoying unprecedented economic advances and boasts the world’s fastest growing middle class, the country is also experiencing a dramatic escalation in reported dowry deaths and bride burnings. Hindu tradition has been transformed as a means to escaping poverty, augmenting one’s wealth or acquiring the modern conveniences that are now advertised daily on television.”

Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist)     30 July 2010

Brutal murder of their wives and inhuman torture and behavior cannot be equated with the husband languishing in the jail.

Should not they get mandatory death punishment for such a brutal murder of his wife, to whom he supposed to protect but shows his physical prowess on a physically weak lady?

Parth Chandra (none)     30 July 2010

@Ashutosh,

 

I didn't wanted to get personal or change the topic of this thread and hence continued putting my reasoning point wise on how current laws are biased and favors women but now I think

 

1) Any feminist (including you) don't have any objective reasoning to answer and hence dragging this thread just by pasting articles from here and there.

 

2) I wonder, how many cases you might have won if the standard of your arguments is same in the court room as well for your client.

 

3) I request you to stop putting Ramayana, Mahabharata, devdasi etc. etc. things in this thread and come with objective statements on how the laws as per you aren't biased and favors women just on prima-facie allegation without hearing the opposite side.

 

4) Do you think by giving the arguments (as you have been giving without knowing where to go), you can convict an innocent (forget innocent, even a real cruel offender)?....If so ... is there any judge reading this thread....then....can he please comment on this?

 

5) I request you to stop advocating and join some women welfare nonprofit organization and fight the cases for women for free, in that way you would really help women (oopps but there also you would have to make legal points in court...which you don't seems to be knowing at all and hence using this forum to attract women clients just by giving provocative cut-paste postings and without applying your own mind)

Bhartiya No. 1 (Nationalist)     30 July 2010

The pitiable condition and crime against women shows that “either law is not really in favor of women or it is a complete failure" Any sensitive genuine person after going thru’ surveys, news paper reading, research and happening in and around, cannot say that law is really in favor of women.

All the surveys of my above postings are not mine rather is of third party. It is not me rather national and international organization have made above observation/findings. Had these been of mine thing would have been different.

As rightly observed, it is the financial dependence, makes them helpless. Their contribution gets rebutted.

Arup (UNEMPLOYED)     30 July 2010

AS RAVAN BEATS MANDODARI

THEREFORE RAM SHOULD BE IN JAIL

AGAINST THE FALSE COMPLAIN OF 498A BY SITA.

WHAT TYPE OF LOGIC/JUSTIFICATION THESE ARE?

WHERE IS  THE 'PRUDENT MAN'?


(Guest)

 

 

 

 
 

The Banana Test

 

There is a very, very tall coconut tree and there are 4 animals,

A Lion ,                  A Chimp ,                   A Giraffe ,

......AND...

A Squirrel
 

They decide to compete to see who is the fastest to get a banana off the tree.

Who do you guess will win?
 


Your answer will reflect your personality.



So think carefully . . ...........


Try and answer within 30 seconds.
Got your answer?


Now scroll down to see the analysis.



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If your answer is:

Lion = you're dull.

Chimpanzee = you're dense.

Giraffe = you're a complete moron.

Squirrel = you're hopeless.



A COCONUT TREE DOESN'T HAVE BANANAS.


 

 



Obviously you're stressed and overworked.
You should take some time off and relax

now hurry up and think who need the rest next ....

Arup (UNEMPLOYED)     31 July 2010

THAT MEANS - WE HAVE FOUR PRUDENT ANIMALS.

BUT, - I AM IN SEARCH OF A PRUDENT PERSON.


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