ARMY INSTITUTE OF LAW, MOHALI

PROJECT ON “Dowry death and the Laws in India”

Project Submission in the Partial Fulfillment of Periodic Evaluation of Indian

Penal Code (IPC).

Submission To: Submitted By:

Dr BAJIRAO A RAJWADE AKASH TIWARI

FACULTY: 7th SEMESTER B.A. LL.B.

IPC ROLL NO: - 1735

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This project consumed a huge amount of work, research and dedication. I would like to express
my deepest appreciation to all those who provided me with the possibility to complete this
project work.

Sincere gratitude to our Professor, whose superior knowledge and contribution in stimulating
suggestions helped me to coordinate my full effort in achieving the project.

Furthermore, I would also like to acknowledge with much appreciation the crucial role of
management of Army Institute of Law, who gave the permission to use all required equipment
and necessary material to complete this task of research.

AKASH TIWARI

Roll No. - 1735

INTRODUCTION
The hazard of Dowry system has become a serious and unethical social stigma in Modern India
even-though, the society and the population claim themselves to be literate and educated. This is
leading to repression, brutality and physical & emotional cruelty towards women, further it also
causes serious financial and emotional stress to the wife’s parents and family members, conflicts
in the marriage and in husband’s home. We have such a society where it is a crime to demand
Dowry either during the marriage or even after the marriage, but this dreadful issue of Dowry
System still exists in our society.

GROWTH OF DOWRY SYSTEM IN INDIA

The Dowry System in India is linked with the Marriage establishment. But unlike the present
time dowry was completely a voluntary gift in the ancient time to the daughter and her husband
which in present scenario has become a conditional dowry. The ancient text and literature depicts
and suggest that marriage ceremony was one of the important rituals and one of the main
ceremonies in a person’s life, almost compulsory and binding for all the Hindu men in general
and all women in particular, but there is no mention of Dowry System in those texts and
literature. During the Vedic period, marriage was a holy bond which was blessed by the Gods
and Goddesses themselves and this holy bond could not be broken by any sort of human actions.
There were some very basic and simple rules that people followed for the consideration of the
marriage but there is still no mention of Dowry.

Authors of literature dedicated towards the writing concerned with dowry system growth in India
show that in the past the Daughters were not having any rights of inheritance and were denied of
this right, only the son’s had the right of inheritance and eventually, only the sons inherited their
father’s property. In this scenario, the parents of the daughter during the time of her marriage out
of sheer love and affection used to gift some part of their money and jewellery to her, which
apparently have started and triggered the Dowry System the country.

STATUS OF WOMEN IN ANCIENT INDIA

According to the analysis given by Veena Talwar Oldenburg in her book 1, it is mentioned that
the paper trail left by the British Bureaucrats during the British Colonial rule of India and
according to the personal remarks from women of India, including the author’s remarks on
dowry system, it can be inferred that the theory of dowry was directly responsible for the status
of the women in society and mentioned that the dowry system actually meant to benefit the
married woman, which during the British era converted into a system and landed up harming the
very woman who actually was supposed to benefit from that.

1
Dowry Murder: The Imperial Origins of a Cultural Crime. by Veena Talwar Oldenburg
 GROWTH OF DOWRY DEATHS IN INDIA

Dowry Death can be defined as an unnatural death of the wife due to demand for dowry by the
husband and/or his family. Dowry can include anything from money to assets like jewelry,
movable and immovable property and etc. Women are either killed by the husband or his family,
if their demand, greed and lust for dowry are not fulfilled or the woman commits suicide because
she could not face the harassments anymore over the fulfilment of the dowry.

It is also another way to start or push the husband’s career or to fulfil the family’s demands to the
developing social materialistic requirements. It is a plain greed of the husband and his family to
demand dowry otherwise this heinous practice would have stopped long back.

With passing years cases related to dowry deaths in India are gradually increasing. Also, cases of
cruelty towards the wife by a husband or his relatives are increasing which is prominently caused
by the demand for dowry and wife’s inability to fulfil it.

According to the statistics given in the NCRB Report, 20182, total number of reported cases
related to Dowry Deaths in the year 2018 were 9,621 and total number of reported cases related
to cruelty by the husband or his relatives to the wife in the year 2018 were 1,60,378. India holds
the highest number of Dowry Death cases in the World.

Another glaring issue that comes up with the laws laid down to protect women from this cruel act
is that misuse of the very same laws by the wife or her family to harass and blackmail the
husband or his family, which is also needed to be dealt with in a swift manner.

LEGAL SERVICES AVAILABLE TO THE VICTIMS

With the increasing number of dowry death cases in India, the Government has laid some
guidelines to deal with such cases and the laws have also been amended for strengthening the
legal system to protect and support the victims who come under the cases of dowry deaths or
cruelty. We have The Indian Penal Code (I.P.C.), The Indian Evidence Act (I.E.A.), Criminal
Procedure Code (Cr.P.C.) and The Dowry Prohibition Act (D.P.A.), to protect the women from
being subjected to Dowry Deaths or Cruelty arising out of disputes related to dowry.

INDIAN PENAL CODE

Section 304 – B of the I.P.C. deals with Dowry Death. That further says:
(1) Where the death of a woman is caused by any burns or bodily injury or occurs
otherwise than under normal circumstances within seven years of her marriage and it
2
Crime in India, 2018 - National Crime Records Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs, New Delhi, India.
 is shown that soon before her death she was subjected to cruelty or harassment by her
husband or any relative of her husband for, or in connection with, any demand for
dowry, such death shall be called "dowry death", and such husband or relative shall
be deemed to have caused her death.
(2) Whoever commits dowry death shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which
shall not be less than seven years but which may extend to imprisonment for life.

Ingredients of Section 304 – B of I.P.C. are as follows:

1. When the death of the woman is caused under abnormal and suspicious circumstances
caused by burns or any other bodily injuries.
2. Within 7 years of the marriage.
3. The death is caused in relation to demand for dowry.
4. The expression of “Soon before her Death”.

 It is a Cognizable, Non – Bailable, Non – Compoundable offence.

Further, in the case of Raja Lal Singh v. State of Jharkhand3 it was said by the apex court that
the term “soon before her death” that is given in Section 304 – B of the I.P.C. is a very flexible
expression, it can be interpreted as instantly before her death or within a reasonable time before
her death. The thing that is significant over here is that there should be an appreciable connection
between the death of the woman and the harassment she faced related to dowry demand.

If the wife dies within 7 years of the marriage and if there is no demand for dowry and there was
no ill-treatment as well from the side of husband and his family, then the husband and his family
cannot be held liable and charged under section 304 – B of the I.P.C., held by the Hon’ble
Supreme Court in the case of Meka Ramaswamy v. Dasari Mohan and other4

In Prahallad Budek v. State of Orissa 5 it was held that there should be a live link between the
death of the woman and the harassment and cruelty faced by her in relation to demand of dowry,
and if there is no such link then the offence of Section 304 – B of I.P.C. cannot be established
against the husband or husband’s relatives. Also, it was held that the time gap should not be
much between the cruelty and harassment and the death of the woman.

 Section 498 – A of the I.P.C. deals with Husband or relative of husband of a woman
subjecting her to cruelty. That further says:

3
(2007) 15 SCC 415; (2010) 3 SCC (Cri) 539; AIR 2007 SC 2154; MANU/SC/7622/2007
4
SCC (Cri) 604; AIR 1998 SC 774; MANU/SC/0042/1998
5
(2008) 64 AIC 458; 2008 CriLJ (NOC 339)97)
 Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such
woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to
three years and shall also be liable to fine.

Ingredients of Section 498 – A of I.P.C. are as follows:

1. The woman should be a married woman.

2. The married woman should be the subject of the cruelty or harassment.
3. The harassment or cruelty should be done by the husband or by husband’s relatives.

4. There should be a Mens Rea on the part of husband or husband’s relatives. It is a

Cognizable, Non – Bailable, Non – Compoundable offence.

In the case of Balwant Singh and others v. State of Himachal Pradesh6 the 2 judges bench said
that the person who is acquitted under section 304 – B of the I.P.C. can also be convicted under
section 498 – A of the I.P.C. as both the sections of the I.P.C. cannot be held as mutually
inclusive.

Further to give justice to the deceased and to strengthen the belief of the society in the legal
system of the country the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Pawan Kumar and others v.
State of Haryana7 held that the wife who died within 7 years of the marriage, which is the result
of a dowry death by committing suicide, then along with section 304 – B of the I.P.C and section
498 – A of the I.P.C. the accused can also be held liable under section 306 of the I.P.C. (which
says Abetment of attempt to commit suicide) as the treatment of the accused forced the wife to
do so.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT

Section 113 – B of the I.E.A. deals with Presumption as to dowry death. That further says:
When the question is whether a person has committed the dowry death of a woman and it
is shown that soon before her death such woman has been subjected by such person to

6
(2008) 15 SCC 497; (2009) 3 SCC (Cri) 1094; 2008 CriLJ 4683; MANU/SC/4359/2008
7
(1998) 3 SCC 309; 1998 SCC (Cri) 740; AIR 1998 SC 958; MANU/SC/0104/1998
 cruelty or harassment for, or in connection with, any demand for dowry, the Court shall
presume that such person had caused the dowry death.

The ingredient of this section is the fulfilment of the ingredients of section 304 – B of the I.P.C.

In Kamesh Panjiyar alias Kamlesh Panjiyar v. State of Bihar 8the court said that if there is a
conjoint reading of section 113 – B of the I.E.A. and section 304 – B of the I.P.C. then there have
to be some evidences submitted before the court stating that there have been cruelty and
harassment to the wife from the side of husband or husband’s relatives in order to punish the
accused in the matter of dowry death.

DOWRY PROHIBITION ACT,1961

The whole of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 is prepared, equipped and developed in order to
provide relief to the victims of the dowry cases in the country. The entire act solely fulfils the
purpose to protect woman’s sufferings from the dowry harassment and cruelty.

It contains a total of 10 sections of which following are the heading of each section:

1) Section 1 – Short title, extent and commencement

2) Section 2 – Definition of “dowry”
3) Section 3 – Penalty for giving or taking dowry
4) Section 4 – Penalty for demanding dowry
5) Section 4A – Ban on advertisement
6) Section 5 – Agreement for giving or taking dowry to be void
7) Section 6 – Dowry to be for the benefit of the wife or her heirs
8) Section 7 – Cognizance of offence
9) Section 8 – Offences to be cognizable for certain purposes and to be non-bailable and
non-compoundable
10) Section 8A – Burden of proof in certain cases
11) Section 8B – Dowry Prohibition Officers
12) Section 9 – Power to make rules
13) Section 10 – Power of State Government to make rules

8
(2005) 2 SCC 388; 2005 SCC (Cri) 511; AIR 2005 SC 785; MANU/SC/0076/2005
As it can be seen that this Act is drafted, keeping in mind the interest of all areas of society and
law in order to protect and enhance the status of dowry victims which may be leading them to
death, suicide, harassment or cruelty.

It is understood that the word “Dowry” is a social evil, but as it can be seen in section 6 of the
D.P. Act which says “Dowry to be for the benefit of the wife or her heirs”, here we should
understand that Dowry is simply a sum of property (whether it is money or any other property)
given by her parents or her parents’ family out of sheer love and affection to protect the social
and financial interest of a woman and which is not social evil. In-fact the social evil is the
“demand” of dowry by the husband or his family, faced by the wife and her family.

In the landmark judgement of Suresh Kumar Singh v. State of U.P. 9 The apex court held that
the proof of demand of dowry as shown by the prosecution should not be too old from the death
of the woman. The propinquity of dowry demand and the death of the victim should be
established to evoke the expression of “soon before her death” and charge the accused under the
D.P. Act as well.

MISUSE OF THE LAWS, PROVISIONS, RIGHTS PROVIDED TO THE WOMEN

Along with the development of laws to protect women, there have instances of misuse of these
laws by women themselves. There have been a good number of cases of false acquisitions and
gross misuse of these rights. In many cases where demands of the Wife are not being fulfilled,
and in order to harass the husband and his family, or if the marriage is strained because of any
other extraneous reasons, they lodge false complaint with the nearest police station and the
husband and/or his family are instantly arrested without investigations. There have also been
cases of suicide by the husband or his family members during the course of their trial because of
the embarrassment they face due to these false allegations.

According to the statistics given in the NCRB Report, 2016 10 the total number of reported False
Cases related to Dowry Deaths in the year 2016 were 254 and the total number of reported False
Cases related to cruelty by the husband or his relatives towards the wife in the year 2016 were
6,745. It is rightly said by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Sushil Kumar Sharma v.
Union of India11 that section 498 – A of the I.P.C. was incorporated for the protection of
women which is being maliciously misused and stated this section as a “Legal Terrorism”.

ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSION

It can now be inferred that the Government of India in conjunction with the guidance of the
Judicial Body of the country have been reasonably successful in laying down most reasonable,
9
(2009) 17 SCC 243; (2011) 1 SCC (Cri) 989; MANU/SC/0953/2009
10
Crime in India, 2016 - National Crime Records Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs, New Delhi, India.
11
(2005) 6 SCC 281; 2005 SCC (Cri) 1473; AIR 2005 SC 3100; MANU/SC/0418/2005
co-operative, supportive provisions and laws to protect the interest, life and dignity of women
and provide justice to victim’s sufferings from harassment, cruelty and dowry deaths. Still
certain stringent corrective measures need to be adopted to eradicate or atleast curb this notorious
issue of dowry demand from our country but most importantly, it requires public will and
commitment to shun away from this social and materialistic evil greed for dowry.

As it is said “whenever there is light, there is shadow too ”, similarly, in order to provide justice to
women and to protect them from dowry harassment in their best interest, there have been cases
of misuse of the laws and provisions provided to help and protect them. These provisions and
rights have been exploited in a wrong manner and that too it has happened for a reasonable
period of time now. This is one of the loopholes that is needed to be corrected and rectified by
the same Nobel, scholar and intellectual law-makers who have laid down these provisions
keeping in mind the protection of women from the heinous crime of dowry.