‘Bride goes missing — A case was filed wherein the bride filed a complaint

with the police against her in-laws, of torture for more dowry. After many

pleadings, the in-laws were released from custody but, shockingly, the

bride was missing from the next day. No clue has been found till now

about her whereabouts. Police has refused to comment on the issue…’

Dowry (dahej) is one of the most ancient practices of India and Oxford

dictionary defines it as ‘an amount of property or money brought by a

bride to her husband on their marriage’.

Sadly, in an age where technology is developing at such a fast pace and

impossible dreams are becoming a reality of our daily life, we still come

across such news at some corner of the newspaper. A Times of India

report on 21 February, 2011 reads, “Recently, 28-year-old R Sushila was

admitted to the burns ward of the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital

(KMCH), Chennai after she tried to immolate herself. When she died a

week later with 90% burns, it was recorded as a suicide. However, nurses

said she had told them she committed suicide unable to bear the pressure

and harassment from her husband and in-laws for dowry.” “We get around

eight burns cases everyday and of those five are women and they are

mostly reported as cases of accidents or suicide.

A majority of these deaths, nurses say, are recorded as suicides by the

husband and his relatives and in some cases by the woman herself. More

often than not, dowry deaths are registered as suicides or accidents.

Victims are doused in fire and set ablaze by the in-laws and in case some

foul is detected, the case immediately becomes a suicide-the bride could

not adjust in the new family, and so she committed suicide.

In India, ancient texts describe women as ‘Power’ which rules over God’s

creation. But current scenario shows a contrast picture. Women have

never been fortunate enough to hold that position. Marriage plays a

significant role in making or marring a woman’s fortune. Not all but many

Indian women fall prey to the monster of dowry. Earlier the dowry system

was prevalent only in the upper classes who considered it an ill-omen to

send their daughter said to be the Goddess of Wealth according to Indian

mythology, empty-handed to her in-laws house. Therefore, they gave her

the articles required for daily household. Daughter’s share of her father’s

property was also sent as ‘gift’. With the passage of time, the significance

and purpose of dowry changed and it has become a social menace that

ails the society now. Today a cultural idea has become a corrupted one

and a blessing has changed into a curse. One of the main reasons is the

growing greed of money, power and status. They dream of a luxurious

living out of the money that the bride brings in as dowry. Thus, it is seen

that most of the victims belong to middle class or lower strata of the

society. Inability to bring in more dowry often result in the brutal murder

of the bride herself. Burning her alive or torturing her to such a severe

extent that she commits suicide as a panacea to all her sufferings.

The sacred union called marriage has been reduced to mere financial

transaction. The huge dowry demands have led to female infanticide and

selective abortions. It was heart-wrenching to see a selective abortion

advertisement which read as — ‘Spend five thousand now to save five

lakhs later.’ The only way to overcome the problem of dowry is

by educating girls and making them independent. According to the

statistics, nearly 40% of women are married before the age of 18 and

almost 63% women are illiterate in rural areas.

Social awareness programs can also prove to be useful. Bridegrooms must

not ask for dowry and bride must make a firm decision to say a strict ‘no’

to families which ask for dowry. The government has taken many steps to

stop the abominable practice of dowry. The Dowry Prohibition Act, passed

in 1961, prohibits the request, payment or acceptance of dowry, where

“dowry” is defined as a gift demanded or given as a precondition for a

marriage. Asking or giving of dowry can be punished by an imprisonment

of up to six months, or a fine of up to Rs.5000. many anti-dowry

legislations have also been made to tackle the dowry system. High dowry

demands have sparked off numerous social and psychological problems

such as female suppression, indebtedness and suicides. It is a shame for

India that the father of the daughter has to bribe the bridegroom’s family

to take off the ‘burden’. Dowry is a stumbling block for our developing

country. When India is marching ahead aiming at social equality and

improvement, women empowerment, dowry is definitely a curse.

Irony lies in the fact that many international peace pacts are being signed

when numerous domestic violence cases are taking place within the four

walls of the house.