New Zealand Equality Education Foundation
(incorporating the International Ex-Fetus Association)
The Silent Tears of Shattered Families: the Ugly
Reality of Dowry Law - IPC - 498a:
An Investigative Report
© 2005-2008 Rakshak Foundation. All rights
reserved. None of the material contained in this booklet can be reproduced,
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holder.
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Executive Summary
“Some of the falsely accused have committed suicide after being jailed, unable to bear the social consequences”
“ Unconstrained, this social evil is threating the foundaton of the Indian family system”
The Supreme Court of India says,“But by misuse of the
provision (IPC 498a - Dowry and Cruelty Law) a new legal
terrorism can be unleashed. The provision is intended
to be used a shield and not an assassin’s weapon”. Laws originally
meant to protect from the dowry menace are being misused by urban
ill-intentioned, unscrupulous women and their families as “an assassin’s
weapon” .There is a rapidly escalating social evil in Indian families, namely the
misuse of the Dowry and Cruelty laws (Criminal Laws), which were
originally meant to act “as a shield” for the protection of harassed
women. Nowadays, the educated urban Indian women have turned the
tables.They have discovered several loopholes in the existing Indian
judicial system and are using the dowry laws to harass all or most of the
husband’s family that includes mothers, sisters, sisters-in-law, elderly
grandparents, disabled individuals and even very young children.We are not talking about the dowry deaths or physical injury cases,
but about dowry harassment cases that require no evidence and can
be filed just based on a single-sentence complaint by the wife.
With an approximately 60,000 such accusations per year, about
200,000 people are directly affected by these false accusations.
The number of such cases has increased by about 100% in the last
10 years and by more than 15% in just the last two years. This poorly
formulated law is inviting unscrupulous people to file false cases, and
causing the imprisonment of innocent people without investigation.These
innocent people undergo stigmatization and hardship even before a trial in
the court of law which leads to immense emotional, physical and financial trauma.
Unable to bear the harassment, the loss of reputation and the social consequences
of being implicated in a false criminal case, some of these falsely accused
husbands and their elderly parents are committing suicide.Despite the recommendations of the Supreme Court of India and Justice
Malimath Committee that the legislative arm should modify the laws such
that the innocent are protected, the suggested amendments to the law
have been largely ignored. Unconstrained, this social evil is threating the
foundaton of the Indian Family system.We are a large group of several thousand families unwilling to succumb to
Legal Terrorism, with a belief that truth shall prevail.
Introduction
What is Section 498a of the IPC (Indian Penal
Code)?Section 498a of the IPC is a criminal law in which the wife
and her family can charge any or all of the husband’s family
of physical or mental cruelity.This law is unique to India as
it not only discriminates based on gender (man Vs. woman),
but also discriminates against women based on their
relationship with the husband.Typically, the charged family
members in these cases include:
- Mostly women of all ages (unmarried, married and pregnant sisters
of the husband, his mother and sisters-in-law, elderly grandmothers and aunts)- Other maternal and paternal relatives and even young children in the family.
For every complaint filed by a woman, there are generally
twice as many or more women are accused although the
married couple may have never lived with any of the people
mentioned in the criminal complaint.
IPC- 498a is
- Cognizable – The accused can be arrested and
jailed without warrant or investigation- Non-Compoundable – The complaint cannot be
withdrawn by the petitioner- Non-Bailable – The accused must appear in the
court to request bailThe accused are presumed guilty, and for all practical
pursposes, the burden is on the accused to prove innocence
in the courts. The FIR is typically an imaginary story, running
into many pages, with absolutely no supporting evidence.
It typically takes about 7 to 8 years for the accused to prove
their innocence in the courts. Due to the overwhelmingly
large number of false cases, the conviction rate in these cases
is close to zero. The delay in the provision of justice amounts
to the denial of justice.There is no penalty for the misuse of IPC 498a, and
after acquittal of the accused, the courts are reluctant
to entertain defamation and perjury cases against the
falsely testifying witnesses.
Why do people misuse IPC 498a?
- Legal Extortion – Get-rich-quick-scheme to extort
large amounts of money- Prior Relationship – Wife has a prior relationship,
and cannot get out of it. She marries to satisfy her
parents, and then misuses the 498a law in order to
obtain a divorce- Adultery – Women who indulge in adultery use
498a as a bargaining tool- Domination – Wife wants the husband to abandon
his parents and siblings, and have total control over
his finances and social behavior- Custody - Deny the father and his family access to
their child(ren).- Fraudulent Marriages - in which the bride (and her family)
hides her education level or mental health;
and when is justifiabily asked to release the person
who has gone into marriage without knowing the
full facts; she files a false 498a caseWhat do the courts, governments and Non-
Government Organizations (NGO) say?
- The Supreme Court and High Courts have
acknowledged this ‘misuse’ as a growing menace in
the society and have recommended the legislature
to amend the law- Justice Malimath committee recommended that IPC
498a be made bailable and compoundable.- The US State Department has issued a travel
warning regarding the misuse of dowry laws in
India, and highlighted the fact that Indian courts
require large sums of money to settle such cases- The Canadian Government has issued a similar
warning- The WHO has explicity mentioned that 498A is one
of biggest reasons for elder abuse in India.- Many women’s organizations, including several State
Commissions for Women, have acknowledged the
misuse of these laws and have recommended similar
protection for men.
What does 498a do to society?
- Abuse of the Criminal Judicial System
- Elder Abuse – Most senior citizens who have never
been to the police stations or courts in their lifetime
are dragged into jail without investigation and then
into court cases that span several years- Women Abuse – Many women in the husband’s
family are abused by the process- Abuse of entire extented family – Many in the
husband’s family lose their jobs/earnings- Cruelty towards Children – Separation of parents
from children, including infants results in trauma- Unequal rights (not only women vs. men but
also women vs. women) – The wife/daughter-inlaw
can file charges against all the women in the
husband’s family even if they are innocent but the
female relatives of a husband do not have similar
legal provisions for protection from a daughterin-
law or sister-in-law even in cases where she is
abusive- Disintegration of families – Due to fear of being
implicated in a false 498A case, parents have
now started to legally disown their sons before or
immediately after marriage.The terror of this law has
resulted in the break up of numerous families.- Suicides of innocent people – Unable to bear
the harassment and the humiliation they suffer
after being charged in a false criminal case, many
people, including aged senior citizens, have been
committing suicides.
“Spare a Thought for Dowry Law Abuse” - Current State
Please take a moment to read through what a lot of
newspapers, judiciary and media are saying about IPC- 498a
(commonly known as Indian dowry law).“Nowadays lots of men are experiencing pre-wedding
jitters. The reason:They are terrified of misuse of the anti-
dowry law.” - Vijay Times, Bangalore,Thursday 07 April, 2005“The police should realize that it is not a matter
between two individuals, not even between two
families, but several families, such as in-laws” - The Hindu,
September 17th, 2004.“Its time that the law is changed and punishment for
these false accusations be made the same as that meted
out to those who are really guilty of such acts.”
“The anti dowry law has number of loopholes and it is high
time that our society wakes up and takes a strong note to
amend these one sided laws which are eventually breaking up
our Indian marriage system” - www.hindustan.net, July 27th, 2005.“The abuse of anti-dowry laws has become serious enough that
the United States Department of State has published a travel warning
about “Dowry/Visa Demands” for travelers to India”
- Lisa Tsering, India West, December 30th, 2004.“In urban area, marital problems are sometimes compounded
by the confrontationist advice given to distressed
women by aggressive NGOs”. “I also feel that the addition
of “emotional” to verbal and physical abuse as a ground
for seeking legal protection is liable to rampant misuse.”
- Chandan Mitra,The Pioneer
(http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnist1.asp?main_ variable=Columnist&file_name=mitra% Fmitra1 . txt&writer=mitra)The judicial authorities of India, in number of landmark
judgments, have taken a serious view of the growing
tendency to falsely implicate innocent members of the
husband’s family in dowry cases. Describing misuse of IPC498a
law as “legal terrorism”, the Supreme Court said no one
could be allowed to unleash frivolous proceedings on this
count as the provisions of Section 498a “is intended to be
used a shield not as an assassin’s weapon.”
“The stringent dowry laws, meant to deter dowry-seekers,
are being increasingly misused by the very people they are
meant to protect.The last three years have seen a steep rise
in the number of cases of harassment for dowry”.
(Ref: http:// cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=170603 ).
Ajaib Singh, head of the Women and Child Support Unit, says 70 percent
of the 1,000-odd cases that they receive every year pertain to dowry,
but only 20 percent of these are genuine.‘‘It is unfortunate that more
and more people are misusing the stringent provisions of the law out of sheer spite.’’
‘‘People generally use this law to facilitate a divorce. And often, it’s
the lawyers who advise the women to implicate their in-laws under the provisions
of this Act,’’ says Shantosh Singh, chairperson of Women Welfare Counseling Cell.
Often, the number of items given in dowry is inflated to claim a high settlement amount.
“There are only 10 per cent cases based on truth, and people usually come to us
and ask specifically to mention the element of dowry in their divorce petitions,”
says Amrikh Singh Kalra, advocate at Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Mahila Thana Station (Lucknow) Officer Vijay Laxmi
Pandey says,‘‘in most cases, it begins with an ego problem
which finally leads to a threat of dowry complaint.We try
our best to solve these cases by providing a non-police
station like atmosphere to counsel the couples.’’‘‘Cases
of dowry harassment in love marriages are also on the
rise. Growing differences between couples after few years
of marriage is the reason in most cases and evidences
provided against the husband are often found to be very
flimsy during investigation,” says Pandey.The Lucknow
Mahila Thana gets at least three cases every week and
those filing the complaints are the harassed husbands of
women who threaten to use the Dowry Protection Act to
their convenience. However, there is no provision under the
law to convert such a complaint, made by a husband, into
FIR and book the wife. According to lawyer Rohit Kant,‘‘The
Section 498a ( 3/4 ) Dowry Protection Act and 406 of Indian
Penal Code are the two Sections which come handy in filing
complaints against husbands.The vice-a-versa doesn’t work.’’
(Reference: http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory. php?newsid=169738).While dowry death and dowry related harassment cases
have been widely discussed, debated and analyzed, often
becoming the headlines of the leading dailies, the gross and
growing misuse of anti-dowry laws has been ignored by the
media and the government.The number of innocent families victimized by the misuse
of 498a is increasing alarmingly.These innocent families are
looked upon as culprits by the neighbours, the society and
the law enforcement authorities when police visit their home
and arrest them. Some of them, have committed suicide
because of the ignominy they had to suffer. “There have
been instances where mother or father have died of shock
or committed suicide because the humiliation of a false
criminal case was too much to bear,’’ writes Kusum, a prolific
writer on gender issue, in her thought provoking book
“Harassed Husband”. ‘’If this trend continues it is not unlikely
that women themselves might suffer as they would lose
credibility and sympathy of the society. Innocent, simple girls
are more likely to suffer because of malicious complaints by
clever and unscrupulous women’’, Kusum warns. Many men
have also committed suicide rather than face humiliation.A bank employee hanged himself in his flat in Maya
Puri, Delhi. The wife often used to stay with her parents.
His efforts to persuade his wife to return to his home only
resulted in his wife filing a false dowry complaint against
him. Another man immolated himself in New Delhi.
The reason being complaint of ‘dowry demand’ by his
estranged wife which led him to jail twice. A 40 year old
ex-Airforce officer, committed suicide in Ahmedabad,
Gujrat, after being implicated in a false 498A case
during which he was jailed for 10 days. Unable to cope
with the “mental torture” inflicted by his wife, a 30 year old
man committed suicide in Krishnagar, West Bengal,
on Jan 3, 2007. He had been dragged to the police station,
on at least a dozen occassions in the past five years, by his
wife, complaining of torture, which were confirmed to be
false by the additional suprintendent of police. Another
man committed suicide in Ahmedabad on Nov 19, 2006
after being harassed in a false 498A case. He was the only
son of his aged parents. A 30 year old man from Kolkata
committed suicide on Sept 1, 2006, after being
implicated and arrested in a 498A case in 1999. Even
after 7 years, his case was subjudice when he died.Numerous senior citizens are also commiting suicide due to
harassment faced due to false 498A cases. A 64 year old
man, a retired employee of a multi-national company,
committed suicide in Kolkata, explicity mentioning
about 498A in his suidice note stating further that “I am
ending my life unable to bear the torture meted out to me
by my daughter-in-law”. Another senior citizen from
Ludhiana, Punjab, killed himself by throwing himself
before a running train and left behind a suicide note that
read “I am ending my life because the parents-in-law of my
son have filed false cases against me and my family”.An old couple from Faridkot, Punjab, killed themselves
by consuming persticides on Jun 20, 2006. It was
revealed that the deceased were feeling harassed and
terrorised after their daughter-in-law got a criminal case
registered against them for bringing insufficient dowry.
Humiliated and on the run, they committed suicide clarifying
in the suicide note that they never harassed their daughter-in-
law for dowry.“There have been sporadic cases where the woman left
her matrimonial house within few days of marriage and
filed a long list of ‘dowry’ in the complaint filed against the husband”The terror of this law has completely destroyed and
annihilated several innocent families. An entire family
consumed poison on Feb 3, 2007 in Alwar, Rajasthan.
The husband, an engineer, and his father died, while his
mother was admitted to Hospital. Right from the starting of
marriage, the bride’s family used to harass the husband by
threatening to implicate him and his entire family in the false
cases related to Dowry. Another instance of mass suicide
involving three members of a family was reported a few
years ago in Ballabgarh, Haryana. In this case, the husband
himself, his young sister and their hapless mother
consumed poison and ended their lives because of the
growing unreasonable demand of the daughter-in-law
and the continuous harassment inflicted by her family.These few instances illustrate the terror that has been
created by anti-dowry laws in the minds of a large number of
husbands who feel captive in the hands of their own wives.
While some hapless men, unable to live a harassed and
humiliated married life, prefer to die, many others live
their married lives under constant fear of being falsely
implicated under section 498a.They are forced to meet
unreasonable demands, tolerating unruly behavior of their
wives only for family’s Izzat.The Dowry Prohibition Act passed in 1961 proscribed
giving or taking of any valuable security or property in
‘’consideration of marriage’’.To plug the loopholes in the
law, the definition of dowry was widened by amendments
in 1984 and 1986, to include any property or valuable
security given or agreed to be given at, or before, or at any
time after the marriage.To further check this deep-rooted
social evil, sections 113 A and 113 B were introduced in the
Indian Evidence Act and section 406 and 498a in the Indian
Penal Code (IPC).The objective was to give legal protection
to the married women against victimization by the dowry
greedy in-laws. But, these laws have now become a
handy weapon for many women to blackmail, harass,
humiliate and falsely implicate the innocent members
of the in-laws family in ‘dowry-demand cases’ and
extract money from them before finally settling the
marital discord or dispute. The cause of dispute may
be something else like sexual dissatisfaction, drinking or
smoking by the husband, lack of privacy, financial constraints,
husband’s ‘extra leaning’ towards his parents or brothers and
sisters, or even wife’s own leaning towards her own family
or some other man which may not be liked by the husband.
In such cases ‘demand of dowry’ becomes an easy excuse for
many women with two advantages in mind - getting rid of
the man and extraction of Moti Rakam (hefty amount) by
forcing the panicked husband and his family to agree to the
terms dictated by her.According to a newspaper report, in 90 per cent of the
cases coming to the Crime Against Women Cell (CAWC),
Nanakpura, Delhi, the lists of dowry, filed by the women
are exaggerated.These contain, among other things
such as, items, which either were never given in dowry or
were already in possession of the woman.While request
for retrieval of stridhan (jewelry) tops the lists submitted
by women to CAWC,‘demand of money by in-laws’ figures
next, the report says.The newspaper report also discloses
that between 20 to 30 per cent of the cases reaching the
CAWC are such that although the stridhan was actually
in possession of the women, they still lodged complaint
against their husbands.This tendency to harass the in-laws is more common among
those women who do not want to compromise with their
husbands or intend to remarry.Their intention is to extract
as much money and material as possible from the marriage.
There have been sporadic cases where the woman left her
matrimonial house within few days of marriage and filed a
long list of ‘dowry’ in the complaint filed against the husband.
Women tend to implicate a large number of members of
the husband’s family due to the simple reason that the
greater the number of accused, the higher the chances of
extracting hefty amount of money as settlement.Taking a
serious note of this growing tendency, the Supreme Court of
India has held that for the fault of the husband, the in-laws
or other relatives cannot, in all cases, be held to be involved
in dowry death.‘’In cases where such accusations are made,
the overt acts attributed to persons other than the husband
are required to be proved beyond reasonable doubt. By mere
conjecture and implications such relations cannot be held
guilty of the offence relating to dowry deaths,’’ the court
observed while allowing an appeal against a verdict of the
Punjab & Haryana High Court in a dowry death case. Earlier,
the Joint Director of the Crime Branch of Mumbai Police had
issued an order on 26 October, 1992 to the effect that the
matter should be thoroughly investigated before registering
a case under section 498a.Today every husband is labeled a torturer and the motherin-
law a demon. A fair amount of blame for this rests on the
media which, with a view to sensationalize the ‘story’ blows
the news of ‘harassment’ or ‘torture’ of married women out
of proportions, without properly investigating the veracity
of the story.The news of alleged ‘torture, harassment, and
misappropriation of stridhan’ of wife by ‘A’ was published
prominently by a leading city newspaper, accusing several
members of his family torturing her.The concerned reporter
never bothered to verify the allegations with the husband
of ‘A’. As the news carried his full name and those of his
relatives, designation and the organization where he was
working, it caused irreparable damage to the entire family’s
image and hard-earned reputation in almost every circle
they moved. Queries started pouring in following this news.
Depressed as he was,‘A’ immediately registered his protest
with the editor.The newspaper did publish his rejoinder, but
after a long time gap and without any apology for publishing
an unverified report.One wonders where this growing tendency of misusing the
useful laws by unscrupulous parties is leading the society.
Harassing and victimizing women for dowry is condemnable.
We all have sisters, and daughters, and undoubtedly they
require legal protection from all forms of harassment and
cruelity but what if the legal loopholes of this very law are
misused by women to harass their husbands and in-laws?How long will the sufferings of the husband and his
family remain unnoticed and their cries unheard?“Today every husband is labeled a
torturer and the mother-in-law a
demon”.
“One wonders where this growing
tendency of misusing the laws by
unscrupulous parties is leading the
society“How many more innocent lives would be lost before
sanity and justice would be restored ?
What do Indian Courts say about IPC-498a ?
Is IPC-498a (dowry law) a balanced law?
Right to life and liberty of every citizen is guaranteed
under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. But this life and
liberty can be curtailed if they hinder others’ life and liberty.
For that due process of law is necessary.While civil law
determines what is right and what is wrong, the criminal law
imposes penalty to deter.Section 498A was inserted in the Indian Penal Code
in 1984 with a view to protect women against dowry
harassment. From the very beginning of this law there has
been reaction from the society including legal luminaries
that this law could be misused and its effects on the society
would be deleterious.In their judicial observations and remarks, the courts have
expressed deep anguish over this law. Here are some recent
judicial observations.Way back in 1990 Punjab and Haryana High court
observed in Jasbir Kaur vs. State of Haryana, (1990)2 Rec
Cri R 243 case as:“It is known that an estranged wife will go to any extent
to rope in as many relatives of the husband as possible
in a desperate effort to salvage whatever remains of an
estranged marriage.”In Kanaraj vs. State of Punjab,2000 CriLJ 2993 the
apex court observed as:“for the fault of the husband the in-laws or other relatives
cannot in all cases be held to be involved.The acts attributed
to such persons have to be proved beyond reasonable doubt
and they cannot be held responsible by mere conjectures
and implications.The tendency to rope in relatives of the
husband as accused has to be curbed”Karnataka High Court, in the case of State Vs. Srikanth,
2002 CriLJ 3605 observed as:“Roping in of the whole of the family including brothers and
sisters-in-law has to be depreciated unless there is a specific
material against these persons, it is down right on the part of
the police to include the whole of the family as accused”Supreme Court, In Mohd. Hoshan vs. State of A.P. 2002
CriLJ 4124 case, observed as:“Whether one spouse has been guilt of cruelty to the other
is essentially a question of fact.The impact of complaints,
accusation or taunts on a person amounting to cruelty
depends on various factors like the sensitivity of the
victim concerned, the social background, the environment,
education etc. Further, mental cruelty varies from person to
person depending on the intensity of the sensitivity, degree
of courage and endurance to withstand such cruelty. Each
case has to be decided on its own facts whether mental
cruelty is made out”Delhi High Court, in Savitri Devi vs. Ramesh Chand, 2003
CriLJ 2759 case observed as:“These provisions were though made with good intentions
but the implementation has left a very bad taste and the
move has been counter productive.There is a growing
tendency amongst the women which is further perpetuated
by their parents and relatives to rope in each and every
relative including minors and even school going kids nearer
or distant relatives and in some cases against every person
of the family of the husband whether living away or in other
town or abroad and married, unmarried sisters, sisters-in-law,
unmarried brothers, married uncles and in some cases grand
parents or as many as 10 to 15 or even more relatives of the
husband.”Punjab and Haryana High Court, in Bhupinder Kaur and
others vs. State of Punjab and others, 2003 CriLJ 3394 case
observed as:“From the reading of the FIR, it is evident that there is no
specific allegation of any act against petitioners Nos. 2 and
3, which constitute offence under s. 498-A I.P.C. I am satisfied
that these two persons have been falsely implicated in the
present case, who were minors at the time of marriage and
even at the time of lodging the present FIR. Neither of these
two persons was alleged to have been entrusted with any
dowry article nor they alleged to have ever demanded any
dowry article. No specific allegation of demand of dowry,
harassment and beating given to the complainant by the
two accused has been made.The allegations made are vague
and general. Moreover, it cannot be ignored that every
member of the family of the husband has been implicated in
the case.The initiation of criminal proceedings against them
in the present case is clearly an abuse of the process of law”Jharkhand High Court in Arjun Ram vs. State of
Jharkhand and another, 2004 CriLJ 2989 case observed as:“In the instant case, it appears that that the criminal case
has been filed, which is manifestly intended with mala fide
and ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused
and with a view to spite him due to private and personal
grudge. In this connection reliance may be placed upon AIR
1992 SC 604 : (1992CriLJ 527)”Supreme Court, in a relatively recent case, Sushil Kumar
Sharma vs. Union of India and others, JT 2005(6) 266
observed as:“The object of the provision is prevention of the dowry
menace. But as has been rightly contented by the petitioner
that many instances have come to light where the
complaints are not bonafide and have been filed with
oblique motive. In such cases acquittal of the accused
does not in all cases wipe out the ignomy suffered during
and prior to trial. Sometimes adverse media coverage
adds to the misery.The question, therefore, is what
remedial measures can be taken to prevent abuse of the
well-intentioned provision. Merely because the provision
is constitutional and intra vires, does not give a licence
to unscrupulous persons to wreck personal vendetta or
unleash harassment. It may, therefore, become necessary
for the legislature to find out ways how the makers of
frivolous complaints or allegations can be appropriately
dealt with.Till then the Courts have to take care of the
situation within the existing frame work. As noted above the
object is to strike at the roots of dowry menace.
But by misuse of the provision a new legal terrorism
can be unleashed. The provision is intended to be used
a shield and not an assassin’s weapon. If cry of “wolf”
is made too often as a prank assistance and protection
may not be available when the actual “wolf” appears.
There is no question of investigating agency and Courts
casually dealing with the allegations.They cannot follow
any straitjacket formula in the matters relating to dowry
tortures, deaths and cruelty. It cannot be lost sight of that
ultimate objective of every legal system is to arrive at truth,
punish the guilty and protect the innocent.There is no
scope for any pre-conceived notion or view. It is strenuously
argued by the petitioner that the investigating agencies
and the courts start with the presumptions that the accused
persons are guilty and that the complainant is speaking the
truth.This is too wide available and generalized statement.
Certain statutory presumptions are drawn which again
are rebuttable. It is to be noted that the role of the
investigating agencies and the courts is that of watch dog
and not of a bloodhound. It should be their effort to see
that an innocent person is not made to suffer on account
of unfounded, baseless and malicious allegations. It is
equally undisputable that in many cases no direct evidence
is available and the courts have to act on circumstantial
evidence.While dealing with such cases, the law laid down
relating to circumstantial evidence has to be kept in view.”Justice Malimath Committee on Reforms of Criminal
Justice System, Government of India, Ministry of Home
Affairs, 2003 observed the following and gave the
recommendation to amend the law immediately:“16.4.4 In less tolerant impulsive woman may lodge an FIR
even on a trivial act. The result is that the husband and
his family may be immediately arrested and there may
be a suspension or loss of job. The offence alleged being
non-bailable, innocent persons languish in custody.There
may be a claim for maintenance adding fuel to fire, if the
husband cannot pay. She may change her mind and get into
the mood to forget and forgive.The husband may realize the
mistakes committed and come forward to turn a new leaf
for a loving and cordial relationship.The woman may like
to seek reconciliation. But this may not be possible due to
the legal obstacles. Even if she wishes to make amends by
withdrawing the complaint, she can not do so as the offence
is non compoundable.The doors for returning to family life
stand closed. She is thus left at the mercy of her natal family.
16.4.5 This section, therefore, helps neither the wife nor
the husband.The offence being non-bailable and non-
compoundable makes an innocent person undergo
stigmatization and hardship. Heartless provisions that
make the offence non-bailable and non-compoundable
operate against reconciliations. It is therefore necessary
to make this offence (a) bailable and (b) compoundable to
give a chance to the spouses to come together.(118) The Code may be suitably amended to make the
offence under Section 498 A of the I.P.Code, bailable and
compoundable.”These are only a few observations of their lordships from
scores which conclusively prove that:
- A woman (not necessarily every woman) can be much
more cruel than a man (not necessarily every man).- While intending to protect the life of a person, s. 498A of
IPC jeopardizes around a dozen innocent persons whether
they are children or old. Hence, the provision is discriminatory
and in violation to the Article 14 of the Constitution of India.- Instead of restoring equilibrium, the provision
aggravates disequilibria. Hence, it is not only imbalanced
but also there is a failure of guarantee of right to life under
Article 21 of the Constitution of India.- For the reasons stated under conclusions 3 and 4 above
the provision is not only imbalanced but also ultravires.Because of these maladies the provision needs to be
amended at the earliest to protect the life and liberty of
millions of innocent people including children and old.
Prior to that the learned and honorable courts may consider
imposition of heavy penalty as done in case of vexatious PILs.
Such PILs are only vexatious but in the matter of the cases
may be false, malafide, malicious and revengeful.
What about the other side of the 498a reality?
“Am I a coward? My knees have circular scars from being
scrubbed with footpad. I have a sambar burn on my face.
I have two stitches on my thigh.Yet I had to face the
threat of being in jail as an aggressor. People either laugh
or sympathize but nobody says I should get justice only
because I happen to be a male! I care two hoots for laughter,
I do not need sympathy but I want justice.
Will I get it?” Says Bhargav, who not only had to face
domestic violence but also the threat of a false 498a case by
his wife.While such stories of male harassment are becoming
very common, the society still finds it hard to empathize with
a man’s plight. It hardly takes any effort to convince people if
the same story were narrated by a woman.Divesh, another harassed husband says,“I do not defy
anyone labeling my narration as ‘my side of the story’…
but my question is why this is not asked when a girl goes to
register a complaint or even during gossips where they are
accompanied by the unlimited stocks of crocodile tears.They
are taken on face value… Is it that females speak only truth?”It might be hard to imagine the reasons why a woman might
want to harm her husband and his family and ruin her own life
by filing a false 498a case.Nakul, a victim explains:“Why do some unscrupulous wives
misuse IPC 498a? Firstly to harass the husband, and maybe
for monetary gains…”It is true that many women are making false accusations of
mental cruelty and harassment on their husbands and in-laws
either of their own accord or at the behest of their family
members.There are many cases where the main issue is
incompatibility between the husband and wife.There are
other cases where the husband discovers that the wife and
her family misrepresented themselves and took advantage of
his trust. In other cases, the domineering influence and greed
of a woman and her family results in marital discord.Whatever
the case may be, the husband and his family are in for a roller-
coaster ride for the next several years if the wife so desires.“Since there are no legal repercussions if the wife is found to be fabricating a
false 498a charge, wives use this almost by default even if they want a divorce for
reasons other than dowry harassment and cruelty on the part of the husband “Some people might ask,“How can a lot of wives misuse
the law when it’s a fact that misusing wives will lose cases
anyway?”Nakul says,“The Indian legal process is a punishment in
itself, especially when it lingers on aimlessly for 5-10
years after the harsh period of police investigations
(institutionalized blackmail to be frank). Since there are
no legal repercussions if the wife is found to be fabricating
a false 498a charge, wives use this almost by default
even if they want a divorce for reasons other than dowry
harassment and cruelty on the part of the husband. Even if
they (complainants) lose the case, there’s nothing for them
to actually lose, as the wife gets a lawyer from the state
(public prosecutor), she doesn’t have to appear other than for
her statements during the trial ( 2-3 court sessions as opposed to
the innumerable sessions which the accused husband and family
have to attend throughout the duration of the case). This no-lose
situation is what makes the law-misusing wife confident
of inflicting damages to her husband without any harm to
her whatsoever.”Nakul also points out that “in this particular criminal section of 498a,
the accused is considered guilty right from the start until proven
innocent (i.e. the onus of proof is on the accused), while in all other
criminal cases (including murder) the accused is considered innocent
until proven guilty.”There are many heart-wrenching stories of innocent families
being arrested without investigation and put in judicial
custody.While IPC 498a is supposed to be a law to protect
women, ironically it harms many more women. For every
male accused of IPC 498a, there is at least one woman (his
mother or sister) who is implicated in a crime that never
occurred. If there are more women in the family they too are
accused irrespective of their age, health condition, marital
status or their physical proximity to the complainant.The
entire family is ruthlessly arrested without investigation
and there are no words to describe the financial hardship
and emotional trauma that they have to endure. Children
suffer whether they are jailed along with their mothers or
are separated from them during that time. If this is not
harassment, then what is?Every innocent person facing a threat or charged with a
crime under section 498a is extremely angry (and justifiably
so) at how the Indian police and judicial systems operate
in these cases. Shishir, a victim, says.“How would you feel
when somebody accuses you of a crime you have never
committed, the law asks you to prove your innocence
and the police punish you even before you are
convicted?”Another striking feature of these victim stories is that the
complainants, in collaboration with the police make sure
that the arrests are strategically planned to harass and
demoralize the accused, to make them succumb to the
fear of being imprisoned and to extract huge amounts of
money thereafter. Shivani, a US citizen who had gone to India
to attend her mother-in-law’s funeral, was arrested under
section 498a (filed by her sister-in-law), during a time when
lawyers were on strike in Chennai. Shivani had to spend
seven gruesome days in prison away from her two little
children (one of whom was sick). Another female victim,
Usha, who had traveled to India to see her dying father,
was arrested along with her brother while their father
was still in hospital. They lost their father while they
were in police custody.Divesh notes that “most of the arrests that have been
purposely made are on Friday evening .The reason is that the
next two days being weekend off ensures that the husbands
and his parents and relatives spend at least that many
days in jail till the court opens on Monday. And if that day
happens to be a government holiday then the proceedings
are in suspension for a further while.The other popular days
are days before holidays especially if the holiday is on Friday,
then Thursday is apt for arrest as the proceedings are halted
for three days minimum and the husbands and his innocent family
members are in jail. I would rate these cases from past
trends as more than 90%.”“Once a family has been tortured using the 498a weapon, the chances
of reconciliation between the husband and wife are nil”
What are the social consequences of misuse of 498a?
Once a family has been tortured using the 498a weapon, the
chances of reconciliation between the husband and wife is
nil.The divorce that ensues is another mode of harassment
for the already impoverished husband because he is forced
to pay a hefty alimony/maintenance demanded by his wife.
As Mihir notes,“An interesting ruling of the Allahabad High
Court, where the wife was made to pay maintenance to her
husband after divorce seemed to be a light of hope for those
aggrieved and deprived husbands. But all the women had
voted against this ruling criticizing the judgment as biased.”Shishir asks,“Why are they calling it as biased? Do they
despise providing any kind of financial support to their
husband? Or do they feel that providing financial support
is only a man’s domain and responsibility and not that of
women? It is evident from the momentum of these women’s
rights campaigns that they not only want to assert their own
‘rights’ in the society but also they want to dictate men’s
‘duties’.” Many feel that this kind of attitude on the part of
women defeats any attempts of achieving gender equality.Voicing the agony of all victimized men, Nakul says,“We are
trying to see courts as our ‘parks’ and litigation as ‘small talk’,
so that we ourselves do not fall into the self-destructive
vortex as the wasteful trials and adjournments and other
self-defeating legal processes stretch out, without any sign
of closure while life is kept in abeyance (can’t restart a family,
can’t relocate easily, can’t be free from time spent, etc.)”Sharat, another victim states,“According to an estimate,
there are around 50,000-55,000 false 498a cases filed every
year in India.This creates multi-dimensional problems to the
families and society:
- Lot of productive time, energy and money of the family are
spent in proving themselves innocent.- Law implementers and judiciary have to spend countless
number of hours presiding over a ‘civil’ matter (false in more
than 90% cases) while the judiciary is already overburdened
and has a severe backlog of millions of civil and criminal
cases.- Tax-payer money is spent on the government lawyer
appointed to the daughter-in-law and letting her fight her
vicious lie.- Families who have never spent a single minute with
lawyers, courts and police, are forced to run frantically
from pillar to post to defend an alleged crime they never
committed and they are bound to get depressed with the
judiciary and police system.- Eventually, the institution of marriage might become more
like a business transaction in which a man and wife will have
to document every agreement in writing in front of lawyers.”When victims and activists protest against misuse of
498a and other dowry-related laws, they face large-scale
denunciation by groups claiming to be women’s rights activists.
But is their criticism justified? As one female victim
questions,“Why do we need unfair laws which will ‘benefit’
a woman if she is a daughter-in-law or wife but harm her if
she is a sister-in-law or mother-in-law? When it is natural for
a woman to simultaneously play all these roles how can a
heavily misused law such as IPC 498a be beneficial to women
in its current form?”Shishir notes,“ 498a law, which was enacted to protect
women from any unlawful dowry or related harassment,
is now become a multi-million racket in our society.
The woman who files a false case, the lawyer who guides
the woman on how to file a false case and the police who
make the arrest, all seek unjust monetary gains from the
situation. Why do we have to keep quiet when it is our
right to fight against injustice? Such draconian laws are
not yet criticized by many women’s organizations which
are campaigning for women’s rights and protection.The
Government too has not provided any remedial measures
to curb such a malicious practice, which was termed “Legal
Terrorism” by Supreme Court of India.The appeals and suggestions of 498a victims to amend
section 498a have been grossly misunderstood and
misrepresented by some women’s organizations (lobbying
for strengthening 498a and other dowry related laws) as
anti-women strategies. In response, here is what victims who
seek nothing but justice and freedom from these unfair laws
and long-drawn criminal procedures have to say:“I do not want 498a to be eradicated. All I want is that the
husband and his family are not arrested without proper
investigation. In addition, if the law is misused then the wife
and her family should be booked and sent to jail.” - Rahul“Do not change 498a. But argue for heavy punishment
to women who file false cases and for lie detection and
brain-mapping test on the accused (cost being paid by
accused). Simple is it not?” - AnamikaDivesh, who has been enduring harassment from his wife
and in-laws for two years cries,“Arey kanoon banane wale,
aap ke ghar mein baap, bhai ya bete hai ke nahi? (Makers of
such laws, don’t you have fathers, brothers or sons in your
homes?)”.Lawmakers, are you listening?
498a Statistics
Perhaps nothing else reveals the extent of the misuse of the
section 498A, than the statistics themselves. The statistics
compiled from various sources reveal some shocking
patterns. The degree of the abuse of this legal tool at the
disposal of unscrupulous women is clearly borne out by
analyzing the data available.The details of the cases filed under section 498A in the year 2005, are as under
(Source : Ministry of Home Affairs, RTI ref. no. 24013 /20/2006-SC/ST-W)
No. of dowry cases registered 58319 No. of dowry cases not charge-sheeted because of frivolous grounds 10491 No. of dowry cases charge-sheeted 47828 Convicted 5739 Acquitted 24127 No. of undecided cases 17962
In year 2005 alone, 134757 people underwent arrest for
58319 complaints under 498A and Dowry Prohibition Act.
(Source : Ministry of Home Affairs, RTI ref. no. 24013 /20/2006-SC/ST-W)
Below 18 years 358 0.2% Between 18-60 years 129655 96% Above 60 years 4744 3.5%
Out of 134,757 accused, approximately 18% were not
chargesheeted, which means 24,256 arrests of innocent
people were caused only because these acts are non-bailable
and cognizable, which forced the police to arrest the accuse,
even though the complaints were frivolous.On an average 2.3 people were arrested in every complaint
by a woman. It is appalling to note that 358 children and
4744 senior citizens were arrested without verification of the
veracity of the complaint.The World Health Organization reports Lebanon and
India as first ranking countries for legal abuse of elders
in its report and explicitly mentions the dowry law as
a tool for rampant abuse of elders in India .
(Document no.WHO/NMH/VIP/02.1,WHO/NMH/NPH/02.2
Title Missing Voices. http:// www.498a.org/legalTorture.htm)
Extract from WHO report
D) Legal and financial abuse
“Legal abuse was named as a particular type of abuse in both India
and Lebanon, although each country has its own specific version of
this. The Indian expression of legal abuse is through abuse of the
dowry laws by daughters-in-law:”
“In India, there is a law that is intended to protect daughters-in-law
from abusive in-laws. A daughter-in-law can go to the police station
and lay a complaint that she is being abused by her in-laws, and the
in-laws are arrested on her word alone. However, the focus group
participants reported that some daughters-in-law are using this law
as a form of elder abuse, by making false police reports. In general,
participants stressed that the lack of a caring attitude by daughters-
in-law was a major problem. (India)”.Not only senior citizens, even women and children are
abused using this legal process. It is ironic that more than
25,000 innocent women get arrested under section 498A,
which has been projected as a law for welfare of women.The data for the arrests made under section 498A and its
analysis is given below (Source : National Crime Records Bureau)
2003 2004 2005 Persons Arrested 110623 125657 127560 Women Arrested 26465 27832 28745 Seniors Arrested 3786 4324 4512 Children Arrested 297 294 339 Persons Chargesheeted 106980 118367 121653 Persons who completed trial 70167 71192 74496 Persons Convicted 12558 14706 14583 Acquittal Rate (for people who completed trial) 82% 79% 80% Innocent Persons Arrested daily 249 273 281 Innocent Women Arrested daily 60 61 63 Innocent Seniors Arrested daily 9 9 10 Innocent Children Arrested daily 1 1 1
The analysis above reveals some startling facts. Under a false
case of section 498A -An INNOCENT child is arrested every day.
An INNOCENT senior citizen is arrested every 2.4 hours.
An INNOCENT woman is arrested every 23 minutes.
An INNOCENT person is arrested every 5 minutes.These statistics clearly demonstrate the legal and systematic
abuse of husbands and their families by vicious and cruel
misuse of this law against them. The abuse by wife is often
in collusion with her relatives.The laws have grave impact on
the life of man and his family, in the event of false allegations,
which are acted upon even before considering the genuiness
of the complaint.In India, men do not have legal recourse in the event of
abuse.The legal system only adds another dimension of
“legal torture” to these families, by making them helpless in
the event of abuse. If a family decides to fight back against
these false allegations, then besides facing an imminent
arrest, they also face tremendous legal hurdles in proving
their innocence.The following data proves that the average length of trial for
cases under section 498A is increasing and because more
498A cases are being filed every year than the courts are able
to adjudicate. (Source : National Crime Records Bureau)
2003 2004 2005 Persons under trial (including past years) 500166 537137 573881 Persons for whom cases were withdrawn 11229 13717 13447 Persons who completed trials 70167 71192 74496 Persons pending trial 418770 452228 485938 Average Length of Trial 7.1 years 7.5 years 7.7 years
In a typical illustration of “Justice Delayed is Justice Denied”,
the lengthy trial forces many innocent families to give in to
extortion and blackmail and “compromise” by giving huge
amounts of money. The feeble recourses of “Restitution of
Conjugal Rights” or “Divorce” make men even more miserable
in an actual domestic tiff. In such situation having left no
legal recourse to get out of abusive relationships, some
innocent men and their families end up taking their own
lives.Men usually commit suicide due to humiliation suffered
in the initial stages of dowry complaint as the complaint
(true or false) usually means few days of arrest (which, in
many cases, results in automatic loss of job, especially Govt.
jobs), humiliation in society and anguish for causing arrest
to elders and youngsters of husband’s family, which usually
means loss of life for elders and loss of dignified career for
the implicated children.Due to stringency of dowry laws, 53 men committed
suicide in year 2004 . (Source : Ministry of Home Affairs, RTI ref.
no. 24013/20/2006-SC/ST-W). One man commits suicide every
week due to this law.The ratio of Male : Female victims of suicide in India
is 63 : 37 and nearly 44.7% of the suicide victims were
married males while only 25% were married females.
(Source: National Crime Records Bureau)A study by Professor K. Nagaraj, senior economist at the
Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS) shows that
the distribution of suicides by marital status reveals some
shocking patterns.The rates do not vary much between the
sexes for the never married. Among those currently married,
while the rate for males is about 17 per 100,000 persons, the
rate for females is 11.4 per 100,000. Among those widowed,
while the rate for males is 21 per 100,000 persons, the rate
for females is also significantly lower, at 6.6 per 100,000.
However, among divorced males the suicide rate is 164
per 100,000 persons, but even in this class, among females
the rate is only 63 per 100,000.While the suicide rate for
separated men is about 167, for females it is 41 per 100,000
persons.Gender biased laws that discriminate against men, create
more injustice in the society. An example is the Domestic
Violence Act, which allows only a woman to file a complaint
against a man. It is the all the more unjust, given the fact that
42% of the victims that commit suicides in marital disputes
are men. (Source : Ministry of Home Affairs)
No. of suicides due to marital dispute in year 2004
Deaths due Domestic Violence
male 321 42% female 441 58%
The misuse of this law is increasing the load on an already
overburdened judiciary. Consider the following data for bail
applications in various courts in New Delhi on a random day
and a week after.
Bail Applications in Delhi Courts on 13th Feb, 2007 (Source : www.delhidistrictcourts.nic.in)
Court 498A related bail applications Total bail applications % of bail applications related to 498A Tiz Hazari 43 82 52% Rohini 21 70 30% Patiala 4 11 36% Kakkardooma 8 31 26% Total 76 194 39%
Bail Applications in Delhi Courts on 20th Feb, 2007
(Source : www.delhidistrictcourts.nic.in)
Court 498A related bail applications Total bail applications % of bail applications related to 498A Tiz Hazari 18 51 35% Rohini 11 63 17% Patiala 7 33 21% Kakkardooma 28 55 51% Total 64 202 32%
As can be observed, more than 30% of the bail
applications in the New Delhi courts are related to 498A
cases. Given that about 80% of the cases that complete
trial are found to be without merit, eliminating the false
498A cases will reduce the load on the New Delhi courts
by about 25%, as far as the number of bail applications are
concerned. This would allow the courts to devote more time
for addressing the genuine grievances of citizens.Lastly, one must question the efficacy of such draconian laws
in terms of the achievement of the objective for which they
were originally enacted.The intention behind section 498A
was to curb the social evil of dowry. However, analyzing
the number of cases registered in the past 10 years clearly
exposes the failure of this law. (Source : National Crime Records
Bureau)
Year People Arrested % increase over 1995 1995 28579 1996 35246 23% 1997 36592 28% 1998 41375 45% 1999 43823 53% 2000 45778 60% 2001 49170 72% 2002 49237 72% 2003 50703 77% 2004 58121 103% 2005 58319 104%
No. of Cases (in thousands) registered under section 498A
As can be observed, the number of cases have doubled in
the last 10 years. Since about 80% of the cases that complete
trial are found to be without merit, it shows the increasing
tendency of urban women to misuse the laws for their own
oblique purposes.It is also interesting to note that the number of people
arrested under section 498A has steadily increased over the
years.
No. of Persons (in thousands) arrested under section 498A
It is evident from the data presented above that section 498A
has miserably failed in its goal to protect genuine victims
of dowry abuse. It has, instead, turned into a weapon which
is used extensively to harass innocent families and is solely
responsible for the breakup of many marriages and for the
suicides of numerous hapless victims caught in the net of
this law.Laws like IPC Section 498A and Domestic Violence Act have
number of provisions to intimidate men and their families
The effect of these laws is unjustified power in the hands of
women for blackmail and extortion in domestic disputes,
which irreparably damages the life of husbands and their
relatives and sometimes also becomes the reason for their
death.The nature of Indian society has changed drastically over
the past few years. The existing social conditions demand
that Husband and his family be protected from his wife
and her relatives, as well. It is now imperative that legal
protection be provided to all citizens, irrespective of gender.
The laws must be suitably amended in the interest of our
future generations and women themselves. Unjustified
attempts to discriminate against men will only cause
destruction of the delicate family system, as has been amply
demonstrated in the western nations.
(http://www.scotland.gov. uk/Publications/2005/07/28102739/27419)
Typical Traits of Complainant and Accused
Note: The following are scenarios in which false IPC 498A
(498a) cases have been documented over the last few years.
Therefore, if a husband or his family observes any or a
combination of the following behaviors, he might want to
watch out for a possible 498a case against him.
Typical Complainant is a woman:
- Who is suffering from pre-existing mental problems
such as Borderline Personality Disorder, Bipolar
Disorder, Schizophrenia, etc.,- Whose family is nouveau riche and likes ostentatious
display of wealth, possessions as well as social and
political connections- Who is used to living beyond her means
- Whose father is hen-pecked and whose mother
dominates all family situations- Who listens to and acts in accordance with her
parents’ wishes at all times, exhibiting a lack of
individuality and discretion in dealing with her
married life- Who pushes for quick involvement during the
establishment of a marriage alliance, pressing
the man and his family for an instantaneous
commitment- Who is excessively possessive and suspicious
- Who is self-centered and feels the need to dominate
the relationship and every aspect of decision-
making- Who tries to alienate her husband from his family
and friends- Who is hypersensitive and therefore easily insulted
- Who indulges in verbal abuse and constant criticism
of her husband and in-laws- Who uses blackmail (emotional or otherwise) and
threats to get her unreasonable demands fulfilled by
her husband and in-laws- Who walks out on her husband following an
argument and stays away from her husband
indefinitely without any effort towards reconciliation
Typical Accused is man and his family:
- Who are generally law-abiding citizens with no
connection or experience with police and courts- Who are busy professionals or Non-Resident Indians
and do not have the time and ability to fight long-
drawn cases in Indian courts and therefore stand out
as soft targets for blackmails and threats- Who are living in a joint family and do not yield to
wife's demand to setup a nuclear family- Who are individualistic and refuse to submit to the
controlling nature of the wife and in-laws- Who are wealthy and have a lot to lose under threat
of arrest and extortion- Who serve the Indian Government, and whose
employment would be at stake if they were arrested
or imprisoned- Who are unwilling or unable to meet the monetary
demands of the wife and her family
Thought provoking questions about 498a
Registration of FIR, arrest and court proceedings:
- When an FIR under IPC section 498A (498a) is
registered, the accused are automatically arrested
and jailed without investigation. The Supreme Court
of India has ruled several times that arrest should be
an exception, and not a compulsory. Why is there no
penalty for disobeying the Supreme Court’s orders?
Is it not mental cruelty to subject a person to arrest
without investigation or reasonable cause?- Why is there no provision in the criminal law that can
serve to deter false and exaggerated claims?- Why does not the judicial system use its power to
deter frivolous complaints made by unscrupulous
individuals and prosecutions by corrupt law and order
personnel for wasting the honorable courts’ precious
time and imposing the financial burden on the public
exchequer?- Why is there no provision by which the costs relating
to false 498a cases can be recorded and recovered
from the complainants to compensate the falsely
accused?- Why is there no penalty for the complainant who does
not appear to the court proceedings?
Equality of laws:
- According to established research, the frequency of
husbands committing suicide is three times that of
wives committing suicide. When a wife commits
suicide it is automatically deemed to be dowry death,
under IPC section 304B. Why do we have no such
protection for husbands?
[ref: http://www.flonnet. com/fl1821/18210960.htm]- The existing laws protect a woman from cruelty and
harassment by her husband and in-laws. Why does
the law not provide protection to a man against
cruelty and harassment by his wife and in-laws?- The Dowry Prohibition Act clearly states that the dowry
giver is also punishable under the said Act. Why do
the police and judicial authorities not take any action
against those who admit that they gave dowry?- Dowry laws were made to protect women from
harassment. What legal protection is available to a
woman who is being harassed by a daughter-in-law
or sister-in-law? What legal remedies are available to
a woman whose daughter-in-law or sister-in-law has
booked a false dowry case against her?
Gender Biased Laws Engender injustice
IPC section 498a was originally designed to protect married
women from being harassed or subjected to cruelty by husbands
and/or their relatives.This law was mainly aimed at curbing dowry
harassment. Unfortunately, this law has been misused to harass
men and their families rather than protect genuine female victims
of harassment.The Supreme Court of India itself has labeled the
misuse of section 498a as “legal terrorism” and stated that “many
instances have come to light where the complaints are not bona
fide and have been filed with an oblique motive. In such cases,
acquittal of the accused does not wipe out the ignominy suffered
during and prior to the trial. Sometimes adverse media coverage
adds to the misery.“ In agreement with the above statement, the
findings of a study conducted by The Center for Social Research
indicated that 98 percent of the cases filed under IPC section
498a are false. Nevertheless, the law has been always justified
based on its intention of protecting women. At this point it would
be worthwhile to think about how IPC section 498a has really
affected women.It has been argued by Government officials favoring the law
that despite the establishment of legal measures to counter
harassment of married women, there is an increase in the number
of cases of harassment.The first part of the statement suggests
that women who are harassed should be utilizing this law as a
means of protection. If harassed women indeed used the law then
we should see a decrease in the number of cases of harassment
over time. Considering the stringent consequences imposed by
the law and the inordinate delays inherent in the legal system, no
ordinary citizen, male or female, would be impudent enough to
risk being implicated under this law for the sake of satisfying their
monetary or even sadistic desires for that matter.The fact is that many women who are actually beaten up and
harassed by their husbands and in-laws rarely file 498a or resort to
other dowry related laws. A lot of them live in rural areas, unaware
of the law or lack the necessary economic and moral support from
their natal families. Going by the conviction rate the proportion of
women who have genuine cases is 2%. Most women who file 498a
are from urban backgrounds and are either capable of fending
for themselves or have enough family support to fall back on.The
proportion of women who belong to this category is 98%. In the
98% of false cases, in every instance that 1 daughter-in-law files
a false complaint at least women (an innocent mother-in-law
and sister-in-law) are arrested and undergo stress, humiliation and
harassment in the hands of the exploitative police, lawyers, staff
and officials in Indian courts before being acquitted several years
later. So, in every 100 cases 2 women genuinely benefit, 98 women
get away with perjury and extortion, and at least 196 women suffer needlessly.The number of cases that are filed in police stations or courts are
the basis for the official statistics of dowry harassment. So, given
that the law allows women unlimited scope to fabricate lies (with
no penalty of perjury) and given that women are encouraged
to keep filing false cases the statistics of “dowry harassment” are
bound to rise while the problem of genuine harassment is left
unchecked. So, the government has, in the name of protection
of women, done grave injustice to two groups of women.The
first group constitutes the genuine victims of dowry harassment
whose misery remains unmitigated but is constantly alluded to
in order to justify the law.The second group consists of innocent
mothers and sisters of husbands who are criminalized and
harassed by the police and the legal system without any regard
to their age, health or marital status. Pregnant women, unmarried
sisters, ailing mothers and even aged grandmothers have been
sent behind the bars under false allegations but their pain and
suffering has not even been acknowledged leave alone addressed
by the Government.Through IPC section 498a, the Government
is actually protecting those women that indulge in perjury,
blackmail, extortion and harassment of their husbands and in-
laws.The recently passed Domestic Violence Bill claims that it will
protect women from domestic violence which includes physical,
verbal, emotional, sexual and economical abuse. According to the
law an aggrieved person is defined as “any woman who is, or has
been, in a domestic relationship with the respondent…” and a
respondent is defined as “an adult male person who is, or has been,
in a domestic relationship with the aggrieved person…”.Thus, the
law only recognizes domestic violence committed by a man on a
woman in a household shared in the past or present.While this
law is heavily biased against men, many supporters of the law are
claiming that this law is good for women.The following are some
gross inconsistencies in the law that prove that the DV Act is not
good for women either.There are several instances where a daughter-in-law and/or
her blood relatives commit domestic violence (as defined by
the law) against her mother-in-law, sister-in-law or any other
females related by marriage. In addition, mothers or step-mothers
abuse their children (who include daughters or step-daughters)
physically, verbally, emotionally and economically and vice versa. In
such a situation, the law does not provide any protection to female
victims of Domestic Violence.Thus, the law can only be used by a
wife or a girlfriend (present or former) and their relatives/friends
against a man and his family.According to Clause 17 of the Act legally divorced women and
former separated girlfriends/live-in partners can claim right to
residence in the home of their former husband or former partner
even though the Act says they may not have any right, title or
beneficial interest in the same.The law can thus force a former
wife or former girlfriend on a man’s household and violate the
rights of his present wife or partner.The law does not provide
protection to a man’s current wife or girlfriend/live-in partner or
even dependent mothers and sisters under such circumstances.
Here, the law favors divorced women and former girlfriends at
the cost of the rights of a legally wedded wife/live-in partner and
other female relatives that share a household with a man.According to clause 19 a man can be removed from his own
household and him and his relatives can be restrained from
entering any portion of the household in which the aggrieved
person resides.Through this clause the law supports the
encroachment of property by a girlfriend (former or present) at the
expense of the right to residence of a man, his legally wedded wife
and any other dependent female members of a family. In the name
of protecting a section of women who may be making true or false
allegations, the law penalizes innocent women who are related to
an accused man.Despite documented evidence that section 498a of IPC has been
heavily misused affecting more and more women (along with
men) everyday, no amendments to this law have been proposed
so far. As with section 498a of IPC, the Domestic Violence Act is
replete with loopholes and is bound to be misused.The DV Act
will allow legally wedded women, divorced women and girlfriends
(former or present) to subject a man and his relatives (male and
female) to domestic violence and legal harassment. This Act, like
Section 498a of IPC will result in the harassment of many more
innocent women than it claims it will protect. It is important for
the Government to acknowledge the fact that IPC 498a and DV Act
are bad laws that criminalize ordinary citizens (male and female)
and violate their fundamental rights. Unless urgent amendments
are made to prevent the misuse of these laws, credibility of women
will be lost. In addition to lost credibility, an overload of false cases
will worsen the delays in the judicial process and deny timely
justice to women who are genuinely aggrieved.Unreasonable and easily misused laws like IPC 498a and DV Act
are already creating a situation of fear and mutual distrust and
adversely affecting interpersonal relationships between men
and women in the society.This is resulting in more and more
broken families and depriving children of a healthy childhood.
If the Government and women’s organizations were truly
interested in improving the living conditions of women in India
they would focus on empowering women through education.Education builds self-confidence and gives a person the ability to
stand up for oneself. Educating women can also ensure that the
next generation of children are raised to treat each other with
respect and be better citizens.The Government and women’s
organizations can also lend support for rehabilitation of abused
women and protect them from further harassment without doing
injustice to innocent men. It would behoove the Government
and women’s organizations to work in collaboration with social
scientists and psychologists to understand human behavior in the
context of changing social conditions and standards in India and
think about workable solutions to deal with Domestic Violence
and other forms of abuse instead of criminalizing ordinary citizens.
Positive measures that can bring about domestic harmony are the
only way to ensure family stability and long-term social stability.
Steps And Suggestions to Government
1. Role of Women NGOs:
These organizations should investigate complaint properly without any bias
towards the woman keeping in mind that the law is being misused largely to
harass more women in husband’s family.They should not encourage any woman
to file a criminal case against her in-laws for trivial matters.Foreign Women Organizations should also take responsibility of not allowing
false complaint to be registered against NRI’s just to harass and extort huge
amount of money from them. These organizations should also conduct
survey/research on the misuse of the act and should educate people about
its consequences.If these organizations are found to be assisting in filing false complaints,
then they should be made liable for prosecution in the country where
they are functioning.
2. Family Counseling Centers:
Numerous cases of men being harassed
by wife or/and in-laws have come to
light from different parts of the country.
As of now there is no organization,
which can really help these harassed
men and his family members, to
listen their side of the story and put
their point of view in front of the
government. Need of the hour is to create family counseling
centers across the country to help those aggrieved families.
3. Time bound Investigation and Trial :
A speedy trial of 498(a) cases will not only ensure justice for the innocents
that have been implicated in false charges, it will also lead
to prompt redressal of the grievances of real dowry victims.
The reduction in false cases will also reduce the burden on
judiciary and expedite the processing of real cases.
“Honourable Supreme Court of India has asked the government to amend IPC-498a to plug the many loopholes it has”.
It’s high time government acts on these suggestions.
4. Definition of Mental Cruelty:
Mental cruelty has been vaguely defined in the act, which leaves scope of misuse.
This should be clearly elaborated to remove loopholes in the law.There should be
provision for men also to file a case for mental cruelty by his wife.
5. Investigation by Civil authorities:
The investigation into these offences be carried out by civil authorities and only after
his/her finding as to the commission of the offence, cognizance should be taken.The
government should create awareness among officers about its misuse.
6. Bailable:
The main reason of 498a
being misused to harass innocent is
its non-bailable nature.This section
should be made bailable to prevent
innocent old parents, pregnant
sisters, and school going children
from languishing in custody for
weeks without any fault of them.
7. Compoundable:
Once FIR has been registered it becomes
impossible to withdraw the case
even if wife realizes that she has
done a blunder and wants to come
back to her matrimonial home.To
save institution of marriage this
should be made compoundable.Moreover, in the scenario where the couple decides to end
the marriage by mutual divorce, continuation of criminal
proceedings hamper their life.
8. Arrest Warrants:
Arrest warrant should be issued only
against the main accused and only after cognizance has
been taken. Husband family members should not be arrested.
9. Penalty for making false accusation:
Whenever any court comes to the conclusion that the allegations made
regarding commission of offence under section 498a IPC are
unfound, stringent action should be taken against persons
making the allegations.This would discourage persons from
coming to courts with unclean hands and ulterior motives.
Criminal charges should be brought against all authorities
that are collaborating with falsely accusing women and their
parental families.
10. Court Proceedings:
Physical appearance of the accused
on hearing should be waved or kept low to avoid hassles in
appearing to the court, especially for NRIs.The court should
not ask to surrender passport of the husband and his family
which could cost job of the husband and his family members.
11. Registration of Marriage and Gifts Exchanged :
The registration of marriages should be made compulsory
along with the requirement that the couple make a joint
declaration regarding the gifts exchanged during marriage.
12. Punish Dowry Givers :
If the complainant admits giving dowry in the complaint,
the courts should take cognizance of the same and initiate
proceedings against them under the relevant sections of the Dowry Prohibition Act.
13. Penalize corrupt Investigation Officers :
If it is apparent to the court that a fair investigation has not been
conducted by the investigation officer, and that the husband
and his family have been charge-sheeted without proper
verification of the complaint, the investigation officer should
be penalized for gross negligence of duty.
14. NRI Issues :
Unless they are proven to be guilty after the
due judicial process, NRIs should be a given a fair chance to
justice by assuring them of the following -
- Permission to return to country of employment
- No impoundment/revocation of passport and no Interpol Red Corner Notices.
- No unnecessary arrests
- Expeditious investigation and trial.
15.Gender Neutral :
Everyone should have equal rights and
responsibilities, irrespective of gender. In the current social
context, there should be similar laws to protect harassed
husband and his family members from unscrupulous wife.
Media Reports
“If there is a marital discord, man is considered the culprit.
Everybody sympathizes with the woman. The law was made
stringent to protect women but instead it has become a tool
of blackmail” .
“90 percent of dowry harassment complaints are false.”
- Arun Murthy, Founder of Sangyabalya quoted in
“498a gives men pre-wedding jitters”. Vijay Times.
Bangalore. Thursday 07 April, 2005.
“Today, most women end up
using the anti-dowry law to book
husbands for maltreatment even
if dowry is not the cause of marital
breakdown.Thus anti-dowry law has
not curbed the giving and taking of
dowry. It has only provided a strong
weapon for revenge in the hands of
wives against their husbands and
in-laws, whether or not their conflict
is over dowry. Lawyers and even
police routinely advise families to
list ‘dowry demands’ as the primary
cause of marital violence, even if in
actual fact this is not at all the case,
or is only a relatively minor factor in
marital conflict”
- Madhu Purnima Kishwar.
Manushi, Issue 148.
(Published July 2005 in
India Together)
“For women there are many laws to deal with such problems
and many bodies like the Women’s Commission and the
women’s grievance cell, while there is no facility for men who
face problems from their wives”
- Aruna Mukherjee
