Dowry System

 

Dowry System:-Dowry means property or money brought by a bride to her husband. It is a custom prevalent in almost all societies of the world. This custom which has turned into a curse has spread its tentacles alarmingly to the detriment of the marginalized classes of the world.

In many countries, including China – where I grew up – bride price is very common. This tradition has been criticized in the modern era because many believe it frames women as commodities that can be traded. However, it leaves me with a mindset that marrying a daughter is analogous to bestowing. To my surprise, the situation is opposite in India where I recently completed a research project on the issue. It is common that the bridegroom’s family demand so much dowry from the bride’s family that the bride would suffer both physical and mental torture if her family is not able to meet the demands. Both dowry and bride price were practiced in India; however, dowry gradually became more prevalent.

Originally, the dowry was recognized as a token, a present to a daughter given by her family, or a guarantee of security and dignity for daughters in marriage often in the form of cash, jewelry, and gifts. Nevertheless, the dowry today is no longer a gift but a demand – a kind of capital which generates a parasitic economy of males living off ransom or surplus generated from the girl.

Information Gathered by: Trishagni Bhattacharjee

In the following paragraphs we shall try to trace the origin and spread of dowry in different parts of the world and present proposals and suggestions to its effective redress at the end.

It is a misconception that the custom of dowry originated in upper caste Hindu families. This custom is found to a large extent in many parts of the world. It has spread more abominably in the countries of the subcontinent like India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan,etc. Although, in India dowry has been declared unlawful in 1961, yet there is no let-up in this curse to date. According to National Crime Records Bureau in India, a bride is burnt for dowry every 58 minutes. In Pakistan, the situation is also very dismal and appalling. Pakistan also has a law regarding dowry like The West Pakistan Dowry Act which was enforced in 1967. But, this law was replaced by the Dowry and Bridal Gift Restriction Act 1976.This act has jurisdiction over all the citizens of Pakistan. It stipulates that the value of dowry should not go beyond 5000 rupees. Moreover, clause seven of the Act provides that the list of dowry items should be exhibited and communicated to the marriage registrar. The sad part of the story is that Pakistan being a Muslim-dominant country is not immune to this menace. There is no concept of dowry in Islam. Some people, out of ignorance, may point out that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) also gave dowry to his daughter, Hazrat Fatima(R.A) when she was married to Hazrat Ali(R.A). The fact of the matter is that this dowry included very simple household items of daily use and not very costly things. And there is no record or evidence that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) gave dowry to his other daughters at the time of their marriage.

Although it is difficult to determine the exact cause, here is a tentative list of responsible factors:

• Greed Factor

• Patriarchal Society

• Religious Constraints

• Constraints related to Caste/Creed

• Lack of Formal Education

• Conservative Thinking

• Desire to flaunt Social Status

• Low Status of Women

• A False Sense of Prestige

• Illiteracy & Ignorance

• Lack of Knowledge about Anti-Dowry Laws

From being a financial burden on a daughter’s family to wastage of money, this evil is silently claiming the lives of innocent married women. Dowry deaths are relatively higher in developing and underdeveloped economies, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Iran, to name a few.Although our Constitution grants equal rights to women but has our patriarchal society stopped seeing them more than a personal possession? Simply put, the infamous dowry system dehumanizes females by treating them as exchangeable commodities.

Creating social awareness among the masses should be the first step in the fight to eradicate this social evil. Media, in this case, can play a proactive role. No doubt, several laws have been enacted so far, including the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, but the action needs to be taken on the front of enforcement.Parents must be alert of any suspicious injury or bruises of their daughters after their marriage. They must pay serious attention if they see any sign of depressive behaviour in her daughter’s personality.

Information Gathered by: Garvit Gehlot

What is Mahr?

Mahr or Dower under Islamic Law is essentially the sum of money or property which a wife is entitled to get from her husband on marriage. The object behind providing Mahr is to enable independence of the wife and also acts as an indirect check on the husband’s unhampered right of divorce. 

In Islamic marriages a Mahr is usually determined before the marriage and in the event that the contract of the marriage does not contain an exact or specified mahr, the husband must still pay the wife an equitable sum of money. 

When we look at the definition of Mahr from a legal perspective we see that the Allahabad HC in 1886 defined it as 

“a sum of money or other property promised by the husband to be paid or delivered to the wife in consideration of the marriage and even where no dower is expressly fixed, the law confers the right of dower upon wife as necessary effect of marriage”

How does Islamic law differentiate between Mahr and dowry? 

Every single one of us would’ve, at any point of time, seen a Bollywood movie wherein the parents of the bridegroom ask for certain monetary benefits from the bride’s parents and carry on to publicly humiliate them upon refusal for such a request. This practice had been one of the major social problems in our country. It is called Dahej in Hindi and in Arabic, it is commonly known as Jahez. According to Islamic law Jahez, in its essence is very different from Mahr. 

It can be understood that Islamic Law strictly prohibits Jahez and regards it as a societal and cultural evil. The Islamic law does, however, hold the concept of Mahr to be empowering towards women and it is a right which is bestowed upon the wife/bride unlike the concept of dowry where there is a wrongful liability on the women. It views Mahr as a tool for balancing the inequality and providing a voice to the women.

According to Mulla, a renowned jurist, Islamic Law ensures that the wife is entitled to the Mahr from her husband.

When we take the Indian legal scenario into the picture we can understand that the concept of dowry has been properly defined under Section 2 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. While going through that definition we can see that mahr or dower under Islamic law is considered to be an exception

The importance of Mahr cannot be emphasized enough as it provides protection to the women against the arbitrary exercise of the power of divorce of the husband. 

What are the remedies available to a Muslim woman to recover mahr? 

• In case there has been no effective enforcement of the woman’s right to receive mahr the following solutions are available
• The wife can resist cohabitation with the husband if the marriage has not been consummated, till the mahr has been paid off. If the marriage has been consummated then the absolute right of the wife to insist on payment of prompt dower is lost.

1. The wife has a right to retain the husband’s property and till the repayment of the mahr which also includes
2. Payment of dower from the income that is generated by such a property
3. This right of retention will come into force only after the dissolution of the marriage and not before
4. This right of retention does not make her the owner of the property 
5. Acc. to the Patna High Court the right to retention is not transferable but according to the Allahabad High Court such a right is transferable and heritable

• If the dower is deferred, the wife is entitled to it upon dissolution of marriage either due to divorce or due to death.
• If dower has not been agreed upon at the time of marriage, courts can decide the amount of dower by taking into consideration the financial status of the husband, cost of living, the property of the wife and age of the wife into consideration.

Information Gathered by: Yadvendra Pal Singh

SUGGESTION FOR THE ERADICATION OF DOWRY PROBLEM:

Based on this study and on various other research reports it will be worthy

to take up the exercise of making certain suggestions for the eradication of dowry

menace, in the Hindu Social system, with special emphasis on the said problem

among the scheduled castes.

1. Experience shows that spread of education among the scheduled castes can

bring abou: a change in the positive direction. Properly educated youths

are likely to be averse to receiving and offering ofdowry in any form.

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2. Even in the case of education, proper emphasis should be laid on the

education of females. It will enable the girls to be economically

independent and empower them for independent decisions making,

concerning an important issue like marriage or dowry. And educated girl is

less likely to accept the marriage proposal where dowry payment is

involved. In such cases the youth willing to marry an educated, employed

or employable girl will be discouraged from expecting dowry. The literacy

level among the females of scheduled castes being low at present, is

contributory factor to the dowry menace.

3. The youth of marriageable age should be encouraged in making their

independent choices regarding the issue like marriage since it is their own

life and their future is involved there. The interference of elders should be

brought to the minimum level in marriage decisions so that the tradition is

honoured simultaneously, along with the independence in selection of

mates without involving issues like dowry. This is, all the more necessary

among the scheduled castes where tradition is still a powerful factor.

4. Inter-caste and inter-religious marriage, which are likely to be love

marriages, must be encouraged and such marriages, while breaking down

caste barriers on the one hand will act also as preventive measure for the

undesirable practices like dowry and other practices.

5. Adequate publicity campaign should be launched to build up an attitude

against the dowry practice by influencing the mind of elders against the

undesirable traditional practices like dowry.

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6. The state Executive Personnel entrusted with the task of implementing the

anti-dowry laws should be alerted to keep an open eye in executing the law

to discourage the dowry practice as a preventive measures and to punish

those involved in it.

7. The volunteers, non-governmental organisations and specific purpose

organisations like National Commission on Women, should be given

sufficient teeth in the form of judicial powers to tackle the problem of

dowry.

SUGGESTION FOR FURTHER RESEARCH IN THE SUBJECT:

The researcher is aware of the fact that it is not as easy as writing an article

or a thesis, to achieve the goal or eradication of dowry practice. Inspite of many

efforts right from pre-independence era the dowry problem has been raising its

head from time to time, even after the independence. Hence, this work of study

may be used as reference work for further study and research, in the study of

dowry problem to know and assess the impact of various measures undertaken by

the governmental and non-governmental organisations in the eradication of dowry

practice.

Bottom Line:

Our conscience needs to be fully awakened to the evils of the dowry system. Also, educated males must refuse to be sold and choose their partners in a fair manner. Taking into account the far-reaching consequences, it is the need of the hour to stand up against this social evil.

Information Gathered by: Arjun Vijay Kumar