The practice of dowry has to be examined in the broader context of the devalued status of women. Parents are often compelled to pay dowry to ensure the security and happiness of their daughter in her matrimonial home.
Dowry
Prohibition Act, Indian law, enacted on May 1, 1961, intended to prevent the
giving or receiving of a dowry.
Amendments
to the original Dowry Prohibition Act also established minimum and maximum
punishments for giving and receiving dowry and created a penalty for demanding
dowry or advertising offers of money or property in connection with a marriage.
The Indian Penal Code was also modified in 1983 to establish specific crimes of
dowry-related cruelty, dowry death, and abetment of suicide. These enactments
punished violence against women by their husbands or their relatives when proof
of dowry demands or dowry harassment could be shown.
The
definition of dowry in the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 is given in Section 2 as
follows:
2.
Definition of “dowry”.—In this Act, “dowry” means any property or valuable security given or agreed
to be given either directly or indirectly—
(a)
by one party to a marriage to the other party to the marriage; or
(b)
by the parents of either party to a marriage or by any other person, to either
party to the marriage or to any other person;
at
or before or any time after the marriage in connection with the marriage of the
said parties, but does not include dower or mahr in the case of persons to whom
the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) applies.
Dowry does
not include dower or mahr in the case of Shariyat laws.
The definition
of the dowry includes the demand for any property before marriage, at the time
of marriage, or even after the marriage from one party of marriage to the other
party. Such demand should be in connection with the marriage. This demand shall
be fulfilled by the party of the marriage, or parents of the party of the marriage, or any other related person of the party of the marriage.
If the husband
demanded an amount of Rs 50,000 by way of dowry some days after the marriage
from the wife’s father and in the event of her not being able to give that
amount was subjected to torture, it would mean that the amount was demanded in
connection with the marriage and it was a demand of dowry even though it was
demanded after marriage.
The Dowry
Prohibition Act 1961 does not bar the traditional giving of presents at or about
the time of a wedding. Thus such presents or dowry given by the parents is
therefore not at all within the definition of the statute. But it is provided
that such gifts must not be demanded, they must be given voluntarily.
The Act
provides for the penalty for taking dowry and abetting to take dowry. Such a person may get a punishment of imprisonment not less than five years and he has
to pay a fine of at least 15,000 or value equal to such dowry demanded, whichever
the more. Such punishment is provided in Section 3 of the Act.
The Act
also makes agreements of giving and taking dowry void by Section 5.
Section 6
of the Act provides for the transfer of the property received in the name of
dowry to the woman within three months from the date of its receipt. Such transfer
in the name of the woman will be beneficial to her and her children. If the
receiver of the dowry fails to transfer such property to the concerned woman
then an amount equal to the value of the property may be recovered from him.
Every
offence under the Act is non-bailable and non-compoundable.
The Act
empowers the State Government to appoint the Dowry Prohibition Officer and to
make rules for carrying purpose of the Act. Also, Central Government is
empowered to make rules for the implementation of the Act.
References:
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