11 Nov 09 A twist to the saas-bahu saga

They are looked upon with suspicion, Hindi soaps portray them as scheming, and when you get married, you are advised to fulfill her needs before yours. But in the modern times, tables seem to have turned. It’s the age of the daughter-in-law, rue mothers-in-law, who have come together to form Akhila Karnataka Atheya Rakshana Vedike (Karnataka Mother-in-law Protection Forum), supporting Save Indian Family Foundation (SIFF). Over 100 mothers-in-law are a part of this association. “We have come together to fight against our daughters-in-law who have slapped false complaints against families by misusing Sec 498 (a) of the Indian Penal Code,” said Rajeshwari C, President of the Forum.

Sec 498 (a), commonly known as the anti-dowry law, was enacted to protect married Indian women from dowry harassment. It applies to ‘husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty’ and states, “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.”

There have been some cases of daughters-in-law using it to their advantage, and extorting money from the in-laws. The “extortion amount” can go up to a maximum of Rs 25 lakh. “My daughter-in-law lodged complaints saying I was harassing her. My husband and son were put behind bars for three days. Currently I am on bail,” said Rajeshwari. Her daughter-in-law demanded over Rs 5 lakh from the family.

The forum wants abolition of Section 498 (a). After repeated appeals to the government, their fight still continues. “Mother-in-law is a woman. We need to fight for our dignity,” said Rani Nagaraj, Secretary of the Forum. She claims that her daughter-in-law slapped false complaints on her and put her through “mental torture”. The bahu left for the US without informing them, leaving behind her daughter with the maternal grandparents and her husband in anguish.

In another instance, Janaki Srinivas, vice-president of Atheya Rakshana, says that her son’s mother-in-law took her daughter to her hometown after three years of blissful married life. They slapped a case under Sec 498 (a) on Janaki’s husband and family. Janaki’s son is barred from talking to his wife, and the family is clueless as to what were the turn of events.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) statistics, 1,23,000 women have been arrested during 2004-2007 without proper investigation, proof, and the need to arrest, but only on the basis of a complaint from a woman or her relatives under Sec 498 (a) and the Dowry Prohibition Act. The very nature of the anti-dowry law makes it wife-biased (daughter-in-law biased), discriminatory, stringent, unprecedented, exceptional and poorly formulated. One line of written or oral complaint from your wife or her family member can land the husband and his entire family in jail without any investigation.

Websites like www.498a.org fight against the misuse of Sec 498 (a), and also advises husbands and their families about what should be done — and how they should go about it — when a case under Sec 498 (a) has been slapped on them.

Akhila Karnataka Atheya Rakshana Vedike along with SIFF, will be organising a debate on ‘Mother-in-law is also a woman and mother-in-law is also a mother’, on the occasion of National Family Harmony Day on November 12, at Sri Shaneshwara Temple Hall, Hanumanthanagar. For more details and to register, contact 9972550220, 9743183369, 9901310307.

Tags: APMPA, Bahu, c president, Daughter-in-Law, daughters in law, domestic violence, dowry, extortion, family foundation, Indian Family, indian penal code, indian women, Marriage, maternal grandparents, men, men's rights, mental torture, mom-in-law, mother-in-law, mothers in law, rajeshwari, Saas, siff, times tables, Women's Rights