Nowhere in the world except in India are there as many goddesses as there are gods. Every god, including the Trinity, has a consort and these goddesses are worshipped with equal veneration. Women are described as a Willing Partner, a counseling minister, an untiring servant and an understanding mother all in one. But things aren’t the same now. We read so many news daily of the crimes that are being committed against women,and there are certain laws framed to protect women. In this article, we are going to look into the aspects of Section 498A.
Section 498A states that” Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty. —Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine”.
Contents
What led to the inclusion of Section 498A?
The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, defines dowry as “any property or valuable security is given or agreed to be given either directly or indirectly
i) By any party to a marriage to the other party (or)
ii) By the parents of either party to a marriage or by any other person to either party to the marriage or the other person, at or before or after the marriage.”
Dowry Prohibition Act had remained on papers. Marriages continued to be glittering affairs,and the demands from the bridegrooms-scooters, cars,and what not are on the increase. Within a year of marriage, the bubble of happiness bursts and the taunting by the in-laws begin. This led to the amendment of Section 498A in the year 1983.
The Nari Raksha Samiti had demanded an amendment of the Marriage Act. It wants every marriage to be compulsorily registered,and dowry is given and accepted to be declared by both parties.
How and why did this Dowry come into practice?
The dowry system has been prevalent in India from time immemorial. In the past, kings and rich people voluntarily offered dowry to the parents of the bridegrooms so that their daughter might be loved and respected by everyone in the houses of their father-in-law, and therefore lead a happy life with their husbands.
At the next stage, the bride’s father voluntarily and willingly offered dowry to her at the time of the marriage so that the bride and the bridegroom could set up their private spaces and lead a comfortable life.
The dowry was in keeping with the status and wealth of the bride’s parents.
At the third stage, the bridegroom himself or his parents demanded the dowry from the parents of the bride. It was settled before the wedding day. The size and items of the dowry demanded were a little or far above the capacity of the bride’s parents.
Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s tireless efforts led to the abolition of the cruel practice of Sati system. Unfortunately, an illegal practice had come in the form of burning the bride, if she does not bring dowry had emerged as a major social evil. Rather it is more heinous than said Sati because women are burnt for the lust of money.
Dowry is an evil. It is the greatest of all social evils. Those who demand it are heartless villains. It is an irony of life to see that the mother-in-law, who was once a bride, forgets her father’s difficulty in paying the dowry demanded by her husband or by his parents. Instead of overlooking or rejecting the dowry, she herself demands it and ill-treats her daughter-in-law. She is not interested in the conjugal bliss which her son and his wife should enjoy. She plays Shylock, demanding her pound of flesh, that is, the dowry or the unpaid half of the dowry.
What are the various crimes against women that can be reported by using Section 498A?
The word cruelty is mentioned in the definition of Section 498A. Cruelty here refers to the different types of abuses that women might encounter. The following types of abuse are commonly committed against women:
- Physical Abuse
- Psychological Abuse
- Sexual Abuse
- Economic Abuse
Physical Abuse:
- Slapping
- Beating
- Arm twisting
- Stabbing
- Strangling
- Burning
- Choking
- Kicking
- Threatening with object or weapon
- Murder
- Female genital mutilation
- Wife inheritance, the practice of passing down the properties of the widow to her husband’s brother
Psychological Abuse:
- Confinement to walls of the home
- Verbal abuse, the use of harsh words intentionally
- Threatening to take away the custody of the children
- Threatening to abandon, intimidating to persecute
Sexual Abuse:
- Forceful Sexual Indulgence
- Forcing unwanted sexual acts
Economic Abuse:
- Refusing to support financially
- Denial of food and negligent to provide basic needs
How and why is Section 498A being misused?
Sometimes, one tends to misuse the freedom that is given to them. The umpteen number of incidents that are reported using mass communication media stand as a testimony to this very fact. Women are no exception to it. These days, some male rights activists are fighting for the rights that can be obtained by men to safeguard themselves.
- More Voice to women:
If a woman approaches a police station to file a case for dowry harassment by her husband, or any of her husband’s relatives, an FIRis filed. - The greed of women:
The greed of women expecting their husbands to earn well and provide them with lavish lifestyle have kept taunting them,and at one point, the husband loses his cool and starts scolding her. The women take advantage of this and file a case on her husband under the charges of verbally abusing her. Thus, the men are left with no other option other than accepting the blame and paying the fine. - The rise of pseudo-feminism:
Feminism is a good concept,but there are too many pseudo feminists out there who misuse the law. The feeling of superiority has taken over the women,and this makes them ruthless to file cases under their own husband who has entered into wedlock with them. - Treatment of men due to women’s vengeance:
The men who are charged under the Section 498A are granted an interim bail as the Section states the crime as anon-bailable offense. The man accused is asked to visit the court often. He is not arrested too. He can’t roam around freely. He is made to undergo huge emotional turmoil as the court asks him to attend the attendings that give him mental counseling and trouble. - Over friendliness of the judiciary towards women:
Women do not attend the case proceedings for months and years together. The over friendliness of the judiciary even does not question the women and her family if they hit or attack the man. The relatives of the man are also taunted often that they suffer without committing any crime.
There is no second question asked. The person who is accused is thus taken into the police custody and then depending on the levels of crime that has been charged, the imprisonment is allotted,or the fine is levied. The fine levied is too high that sometimes it is beyond the capacity of the man.
What are the inferences made from Section 498A?
The following inferences can be made from the guidelines under the Section 498A which is sometimes a blessing, sometimes a curse.
- Special courts should be set up to try divorce cases and cases concerning husband-wife differences. Another suggestion is that a divorced wife should be given compensation in alumpsum. Moreover, it is hard to find an eye witness in the case of dowry death; the cases should be considered by circumstantial evidence only.
- It has also been demanded that if a person is arrested in such cases, he should not be released on bail till the case is finally settled in court. Above all, such persons should be allowed to remarry through Marriage Courts only. So that the parents and girls may be informed about his misconduct in the past.
- Dowry is condemned by the law. The giver and the receiver will be severely punished if it is proved in the law court. But the bridegroom should neither demand the dowry nor allow his parents to demand it. In the same manner, the bride should not allow her parents to offer dowry to give her away in marriage,and she should boldly refuse to marry the man who demands or accepts dowry from her parents.
- The Section 498A should be made as a bailable offense,and that would not spoil the image of a man in society.
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Fortunately, there is a greater awareness today about dowry deaths than it was afew years ago. Girls and boys are keen to marry without dowry and most important of all, people who were getting rid of their wives without any qualms of consciences are now wary. The parents of the girls are also coming out of their shells with a new determination to fight the evil. But at the same time, one should never misuse the powers vested in their hands as with great power comes great responsibility.
Sources and Citations:
https://indiankanoon.org/doc/538436/
http://www.livelaw.in/breaking-misuse-of-s-498a-sc-directs-to-form-family-welfare-committees-to-examine-each-cases-no-arrests-before-committees-report-read-new-guidelines/
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/498a
http://www.498a.org/498aexplained.htm
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/disagree-with-order-diluting-section-498a-sc-4889478/
http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2017/07/28/the-sc-order-on-sec-498a-addresses-the-demands-of-mens-rights_a_23053466/
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/dowry-harassment-cases-sc-to-re-examine-its-verdict-on-no-immediate-arrest/articleshow/61852629.cms
https://blog.ipleaders.in/understand-section-498a-domestic-violence/
https://www.oneindia.com/feature/what-is-section-498-a-how-it-is-misused-explained-1981686.html
http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/144947/4/chapter%202.1.pdf
