According to a UN study, home is the most dangerous place for women across the world. Around 87,000 women were killed around the world in the year 2017 and approximately 50,000 – or 58% – were killed in the hands of intimate partners or family members. This is equal to some six women being killed every hour by people, according to a new research published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Not just that, every day 21 dowry deaths are reported around the country, but the conviction rate remains as low as i.e. 34.7%. Further, according to Delhi Police, till March 15, 2018, 31 women died owing to dowry harassment. Time and again these statistics have been highlighted to curb the growing heinous crime in the country, however, a long-term solution has still not been ascertained. Now, this data seems to be merely numbers.
Delhi’s reality
The notion, that such cases occur only in the rural areas is simply an escape from reality. In fact, as per the latest statistics, in a metropolitan city like Delhi, around 3,877 cases of cruelty by in-laws and husbands were registered in 2016. Till March 15, 2018, as many as 506 such cases were reported in the city itself. Historically, dowry means streedhan, which means a voluntary gift given by the bride’s family members as a token of love for herself. Now, this term has been moulded according to the needs of the people which is a disappointing picture of modernity.
Experts’ view
The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, prohibits the request, payment or acceptance of a dowry ‘as consideration for marriage’, and dowry. However, a big loophole here lies in the improper investigation of a particular case, as per the experts. Pragnesh Parmar, Associate Professor, Forensic Medicine Department, says dowry is a burning issue in the country and it can be solved through an improvement of the educational status of females. It can be done by organising widespread educational cum awareness programs. The offender should be immediately punished in order to serve justice soon to the victims. All these steps will be helpful to tackle these social curses.
My view
- Any unnatural death is a sin in the society and killing someone for money is a bigger crime. I would suggest a re-evaluation of the law, The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, should be done in order to fight against the odds of the society.
- Educational awareness campaigns are indeed the need of the hour, however, proper cleaning and filtration of the mindset should be done immediately. Neighbours can be proved to be a helpful medium to immediately report such cases.
- Before every marriage, a contract ‘No dowry demand’ should be signed by both the parties of the bride and groom, so that, in the future, if anyone tries to break the clause, they can be questioned immediately.
- A girl is a precious wealth of every family and the death of their girl is a trauma for other members. A family should not live with such distress for their whole life. Therefore, there should be more fast-track courts to tackle such cases.
- If a girl is tortured, tormented, every day, and there is nobody to hear her case, then, every local area should have a grievance cell to help the police tackle the issues immediately.