Nashik is a city in the state of Maharashtra, India. Nashik is located in the northwest of Maharashtra.
Hindustan Times
written by Staff
Tuesday April 16, 2013
NASHIK - In-laws of a 20-year-old pregnant woman in Nashik have been charged with murdering an unborn girl child after they allegedly stomped on her stomach and beat her, killing the two-month-old foetus, police said on Tuesday.
The incident took place in the Mhasrul locality where victim Suvarna Gaikwad was being harassed mentally and physically for dowry since her marriage to Khanderao Gaikwad in June 2012, they said.
The young woman was being tortured to bring a dowry of Rs. 1.5 lakh for building a house. Later, when her in-laws came to know that she was pregnant, they took her to a 'godman' Shyambaba Shinde at Niphad, who told them that she was carrying a girl, police said.
Suvarna was told to abort the girl child but when she refused to do so, she was allegedly roughed up by her husband, and family, including the mother-in-law killing the foetus on April 4.
The matter was brought to light by Mahendra Datrange, President of Nashik unit of Blindfaith Eradicating organisation following which the husband, his brother Vijay Gaikwad, maternal father-in-law Dilip Suryavanshi and one of his kins Jalinder Suryavanshi was arrested on Monday, police said.
Offences have been registered against them under different sections of IPC at panchavati police station on Monday, police said.
Suvarna's family, which alleged murder of the girl, is demanding the arrest of her mother-in-law Bibabai, Shinde and others involved in the killing.
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The payment of a dowry gift, often financial, has a long history in many parts of the world. In India, the payment of a dowry was prohibited in 1961 under Indian civil law and subsequently by Sections 304B and 498A of the Indian Penal Code. These laws were enacted to make it easier for the wife to seek redress from potential harassment by the husband's family. Dowry laws have come under criticism as they have been misused by women and their families.
In India, there are civil laws, criminal laws and special legislative acts against the tradition of dowry. Someone accused of taking dowry is therefore subject to a multiplicity of legal processes.
The Dowry Prohibition (DP) Act
Introduced and taken up by then Indlaw minister Ashoke Kumar Sen, this Act prohibits the request, payment or acceptance of a dowry, "as consideration for the marriage", where "dowry" is defined as a gift demanded or given as a precondition for a marriage. Gifts given without a precondition are not considered dowry, and are legal. Asking or giving of dowry can be punished by an imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to Rs. 15000 or the amount of dowry (whichever is higher), or imprisonment up to 5 years. It replaced several pieces of anti-dowry legislation that had been enacted by various Indian states.
The Dowry Prohibition (DP) Act
Introduced and taken up by then Indlaw minister Ashoke Kumar Sen, this Act prohibits the request, payment or acceptance of a dowry, "as consideration for the marriage", where "dowry" is defined as a gift demanded or given as a precondition for a marriage. Gifts given without a precondition are not considered dowry, and are legal. Asking or giving of dowry can be punished by an imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to Rs. 15000 or the amount of dowry (whichever is higher), or imprisonment up to 5 years. It replaced several pieces of anti-dowry legislation that had been enacted by various Indian states.
Domestic Violence Act (2005/2006)
The above being criminal remedies, a civil remedy was brought into the picture in 2005 (amended in 2006). This was called the "Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act".
For the purpose of this act, Domestic Violence includes the demand for dowry:
For the purposes of this Act, any act, omission or commission or conduct of the respondent shall constitute domestic violence in case it -
(a) harms or injures or endangers the health, safety, life, limb or well-being, whether mental or physical, of the aggrieved person or tends to do so and includes causing physical abuse, sexual abuse, verbal and emotional abuse and economic abuse; or
(b) harasses, harms, injures or endangers the aggrieved person with a view to coerce her or any other person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any dowry or other property or valuable security; or (c) has the effect of threatening the aggrieved person or any person related to her by any conduct mentioned in clause (a) or clause (b); or(d) otherwise injures or causes harm, whether physical or mental, to the aggrieved person. This act empowered the lower courts to issue "protection orders" on the complaint of a woman against her male relatives. The protection orders could include restraining orders on the husband and others, monetary compensation, and residence orders.
Though it is a civil remedy, violation of protection orders result in criminal penalties (including imprisonment).
Demands for amending the law
The Malimath committee in 2003 proposed making amendments to this section although such amendments were opposed by women's groups.[citation needed]
The Centre for Social Research released a research report opposing amendments to section 498A. According to this report, in the studied cases there were no convictions based solely on section 498A. However, the report states that 6.5 percent of the studied cases were falsified. They also state that many people believe the law has been abused by "educated and independent minded women". A police official asserted that in his district one-third of dowry murder cases were found to be false by the police.[citation needed]
On December 17, 2003, the then Minister of State for Home Affairs, I.D. Swami, said, "There is no information available with the Government to come to the conclusion that many families in India are suffering due to exaggerated allegations of harassment and dowry cases made by women against their husbands and other family members involving them in criminal misappropriation and cruelty."
In August 2010, the Supreme Court asked the Government of India to amend the Dowry Laws to prevent their misuse.
In February 2011, the Law Commission of India was considering grounds to recommend amendments to IPC 498A.
In January 2012, the Law Commission of India recommended dilution of anti-dowry law (Section 498-A).
In its latest recommendation to the law ministry, the commission headed by Justice PV Reddi, has recommended to the government to make Section 498-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which deals with harassment for dowry and cruelty to a woman in her matrimonial home, a compoundable offence.
The commission said the offence should be allowed to be made compoundable provided the women is facing no external pressure.
This means that those who would be booked in cases under this section would find it easier to get bail.
“…it is proposed to add sub-section (2A) to Section 320 CrPC. The proposed provision will ensure that the offer to compound the offence is voluntary and free from pressures and the wife has not been subjected to ill-treatment subsequent to the offer of compounding. Incidentally, it underscores the need for the court playing an active role while dealing with the application for compounding the offence under Section 498-A,” the report said [sic].
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