06 Feb 10 Domestic Violence Act or Demoralized and Violated Act

The Domestic Violence Act was passed in 2005.and implemented in 2006 for the protection of women (Wife). But the Law-Makers have completely forgotten or rather ignored the fact that violence can be inflicted by the same wife on the members of the family either mentally, physically, emotionally, verbally, socially and financially in order to gain personal scores, to have  financial control or to separate the husband from the parents. According to the law, only the wife can make a complaint and it does not require any proof for her to claim maintenance from the husband. With fabricated stories and crocodile tears she can easily register a false case .The judges feel it is their duty to protect even adulterous wives thus doing injustice to the victim husband and his family.

Each individual coming together make a family and a home. Many homes taken together make a society, a village, a town, a city and a country. But in India gradually the society is breaking up due to the domestic violence happening in each and every home. Why is it that in every family problems start only after a daughter in-law enters the home?

The Government is spending enormously in combating terrorism on the borders of the country but when will the issue of domestic terrorists in the guise of daughter- in- law who Misuses the laws and creates havoc in the families be properly tackled.

Thousands of daughters-in-law have filed criminal cases on their in-laws on flimsy grounds only with the intention to harass and humiliate them and to extort money. Many such victimized mothers-in-law have founded the AIMPF (All INDIA MOTHERS-IN-LAW PROTECTION FORUM) in Bangalore on the 6th of Sept. 2009 followed by similar launch of local chapters in Delhi, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Chennai, Chhattisgarh and Lucknow. More local chapters are yet to open shortly.

The famous women rights activist, Madhu Kishwar has acknowledged the fact that the IPC Section 498A and the Domestic Violence Act are Misused and a significant number of individuals who approached Manushi these days are mothers-in-law and husbands falsely accused of marital cruelty and dowry harassment. She further said that AIMPF would strive towards the protection and welfare of such mothers-in-law in distress by creating awareness, giving them moral support and counseling them.

In the last four years 1, 23,497 women who are mothers-in-law and sisters-in-law (husband’s relatives) were arrested under 498A and also accused of domestic violence for not committing any crime under the law but because they were related to a man.

The Government should reform the present Wife-centric domestic violence law giving equal protection to the mothers-in-law and even to the husbands and children thus including every member in the society who deserve protection irrespective of gender.

Mothers-in-law are being discriminated against in-spite of their generosity just for the sin of giving birth to sons and getting them married. They are being forced to part with their earnings, savings and inherited wealth. They are also being thrown out of their own property at the behest of disgruntled daughter-in-law.

Save Family Foundation and My Nation Foundation had conducted an online survey between  April 2005 and March 2006 and found that out of 1,00,000 men surveyed 98% of men faced severe domestic violence at the hands of their wives and in-laws in the form of verbal, physical,  mental, emotional and financial abuse

1.         Economic violence was the commonest faced by 32.8%.

2.         Physical violence was the closest second at 25.2%

3.         Emotional violence followed suit at 22.2%

4.         Sexual violence contended fourth with 17.7%

5.         Verbal abuse was a problem faced by all men in the above categories.

The gruesome reality is that men suffer in silence for the fear of being discredited or ridiculed in the society. This has resulted in a lot of psychological imbalance, sometimes irreparable damage to the abused male and his family. Even the society believes that men who face domestic violence are somehow responsible for it and should be made to pay the price. This is the reason why the society does not accept/support weak men or men who are victims of domestic violence

The Protector and the Provider of the Family (Male) suffers domestic violence from boyhood to manhood in many ways. Domestic violence can inflicted on employees and servants too can be victims of it, then why only the Wife is taken into consideration under this Act?

Although this Act is propagated by the lawyers and supported by the NCW even the Judiciary is equally responsible for the present condition of the society. From times immemorial the judges avoid listening to a man and without any verification or checking the evidences blindly support the woman. The Disgruntled Wife is thus successful in having orders passed in her favor.

The day is not far when men will refuse to Marry, where will the young, greedy women go then and what will be the future generation?

International studies the world over, including those done by Murray Strauss have proved beyond reasonable doubts that both men and women are equally likely to face domestic violence from their Partners and immediate family including a woman in her natal home by her own parents.

Thus Domestic violence is NOT A ONE GENDER ISSUE as vouched by the Feminists, advocated by the Lawyers, presented by the Media envisaged by the Government, and justified by the Judiciary.

It is rather a SOCIAL ISSUE and needs to be addressed as a social problem only where in there are no ubiquitous and stereotypic assumptions, no double standards and punishment should be CRIME-BASED and not Gender based.

Tags: adulterous wives, chhattisgarh, combating terrorism, crocodile tears, daughters in law, domestic terrorists, domestic violence act, false case, famous women, madhu kishwar, members of the family, mothers in law, nagpur, personal scores, rights activist