Misuse of dowry law must end

Many new laws have come into force in the country after independence. This also includes laws with stringent provisions and punishments to prevent violence against women and children. Special laws have been enacted to prevent dowry harassment due to the fact that many women have committed suicide because they could not bear the dowry harassment in their husbands' houses. Women and children should not be harmed on any account. The most important measure of a civilized society is an environment where women and children can live in the most safe and secure manner. The Houses of Representatives have made such laws with the right intention.

Courts are responsible for punishing those who violate these laws. However, now is the time to do an introspection on whether all the complaints coming to the courts are 100% honest. Experts in the field of law have pointed out that fake complaints are also being filed with the aim of abusing the court system. It is an open secret that the complaint is filed for financial gain and the complaint is withdrawn after receiving a huge sum of money through out-of-court settlement. If this trend is not curbed, it will be tantamount to making fun of the existing laws. It is in this context that the Supreme Court has said that the misuse of Section 498-A of the Act against Dowry Harassment is widespread and suggested that the lower courts should be cautious in this regard.

The Supreme Court bench comprising Justices BV Nagarathna and N Kotiswar Singh has given this direction by emphasizing that the charge should not be imposed only on the basis of allegations without clear evidence. The law should not be turned into a tool for revenge and seizure of property. A similar observation was made by the Kerala State High Court after granting anticipatory bail to actor Balachandra Menon. The High Court said that not only women but men also have dignity and pride. The court also took into account that the complaint filed by the actress, who hails from Aluva, against the actor was 17 years late. The Supreme Court has clarified that this does not mean that women suffering from cruelty should not respond or file a complaint, but the aim is to prevent misuse of the law.

Filing harassment complaints against famous people years late is a recurring phenomenon these days. There are many people who file such complaints for financial reasons and with the intention of gaining fame through the case. Therefore, the court should not encourage false complaints without properly verifying the allegations. Circulation of such complaints without adjudication of the case should also be prevented. In a case filed by a woman in Telangana in the Supreme Court, she alleged that her husband demanded more dowry and that he had an extra-marital affair. By accepting the husband's argument with evidence that this argument is false and that it was the wife who was having an extra-marital affair with another person, the Supreme Court pointed out that the law is being misused to harm innocent family members. Such trends can be curbed only if the courts are prepared to impose heavy fines on those who try to turn the courts into centres of fraud.