TW: Mentions of gender-based violence, suicide
The fact that women have been facing atrocities due to patriarchal policies and mindsets for centuries is no secret and is undeniable. A woman has always been perceived as an inferior gender, subordinate to the man and not equal.
The masculinity complex mindset has developed due to cultural and social narratives. Unfortunately, women have faced the brunt of it and continue to face even today in the most unimaginable situations.
If you happen to read the sections of the Indian Penal Code in a gist, you would realise that we now have many laws that safeguard a woman’s honour, safety and protection, although its implementation remains questionable.
Yet the laws designed are a step towards uplifting women who have been victims of multiple crimes such as rape, dowry harassment, female foeticide, workplace harassment and much more. And the fact that still has to be done a lot for women’s upliftment remains.
Amongst all laws of the Indian Penal Code, perhaps Section 498A is one of the strongest laws that have come into effect to protect women from violence due to dowry harassment.
It came into effect in 1983 to curb the menace of cruelty to married women for want of dowry, which often led to their deaths. Indeed an essential and stringent step taken, the move of the Supreme Court remains applaudable.
What Is Section 498A Of IPC?
A woman’s spouse or a cousin of her husband torturing her— the husband or a relative of the husband of a woman, submits a woman to cruelty will be punished by imprisonment for a period of up to three years, as well as a fine. Explanation — “Cruelty” is defined in this section to mean—
(a) any deliberate behaviour that is likely to force the woman to commit suicide or to cause significant injury or risk to the woman’s life, limb, or health (whether mental or physical); or
(b) harassment of a woman with the intent of coercing her or any person associated with her to fulfil any unlawful demand for property or valuable security, or based on her or any person associated with her failing to meet such demand.
A violation of Section 498A is non-bailable, meaning that bail is granted at the court’s discretion rather than a matter of right. In addition, it’s non-compoundable, so the victim isn’t pushed into making a deal.
And it is cognisable in that a police officer can arrest without a warrant from the court. And all this makes the law wholesome and stringent. But why all the fuss around the law?
“Martyrs of Marriage” And The Conversation It Raises
The documentary “Martyrs of Marriage” by Deepika Narayan Bhardwaj, a mens’ activist, talks about. But, the number of convictions speaks a different story among the lakhs of cases reported every year, each with its version of facts and allegations.
And amid all cases is a booming number of false ones, which has created havoc in the lives of husbands and their families, which sometimes prevails for years and most times even after their deaths.
Does the question arise if the law is in women’s interest or works blindly for women against men? There have been cases of aged mothers of husbands spending nights behind bars without trials for as long as a fortnight.
The false cases speak for themselves, and it is observed that in many instances, the law is used as a tool to extort money from husbands and their families, defame them or sometimes to do a publicity stunt. And the havoc it creates in the lives of men and their families is something on which not much light is shed upon.
Loss of job, career, loss of financial resources, mental harassment is what follows the man and his family but is it all worth it? Not really. The non-bailable nature of the offence, which makes them spend nights in jail till they wait for the magistrate to grant bail, can’t be recovered.
What possibly could be the price that pays the brutality and trauma they go through? A meagre monetary compensation? Sometimes, otherwise, it is none. The absence of laws that punish those who falsely allege raises a pertinent question.
Are laws for women in India endangering innocent men and their families?
Many men succumb to the false litigations by opting for an out of court settlement and paying what the wife and her family demand. That is what they are advised by many. While some men do continue to fight for their lost honour and self-respect while few of them end their lives, the sheer dishonour and ostracisation are too much to handle.
After all, our society readily accepts the idea of a victimised woman but not of a victimised man. The idea that it is a man who always wrongs and never the woman is easily bought and sold-the media trials only make it stronger even before the Court of Law puts out a judgement.
The documentary is an eye-opener to the unequal treatment of the male and the female gender in the eyes of the law. If there are laws to safeguard women, aren’t men entitled to one law protecting them from false allegations and disgrace?
The brutal way many lawyers take the 498A to mint money with the most common narrative of demonising the man and his family is saddening. Is the judiciary so biased towards women that it fails to take notice of some innocent men who get entangled in this for donkey’s years?
However, the solution is not revoking the law, not at all. Amidst the booming false cases, the genuine cases of actual instances of torture and violence cannot be ignored. But the absence of provisions for falsely accused men still lingers, and that remains the most significant loophole of 498A.
Dignity, self-respect and self-esteem are the most treasured intangible assets of every individual, and innocent men lose all of it just in the blink of an eye. And if we vouch for gender equality, we need to introspect whether we demand preferential treatment and no accountability on the female tribe.
Feminism was born as a result of the inequalities that women faced. Let not that become a cause of inequality for the male tribe. Advocating preferential treatment for women by the justification that men have subjected them to the horrendous crimes since aeons are not simply sadistic but also rule out the edifice of what feminism is about.
Stringent laws are a must, but they should not rob innocent men of their peace, dignity, career, money, which sometimes ends in suicide. This also doesn’t mean that we ignore girls’ deaths due to dowry, the prime reason for the existence of 498A.
Deepika Narayan Bhardwaj is an Indian journalist, documentary filmmaker and men’s-rights activist. She rose to prominence after producing a documentary— “Martyrs of Marriage,” which covered abuse of criminal section 498A by brides and their families.
Watch the documentary on Youtube to know more about those falsely accused married men and their experiences. Let’s also see the other side of the coin that is not much spoken about—the less heard tales of married men.