CJI points to judges’ ignorance

CJI points to judges' ignorance

OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

HC CJ Gyan Sudha Misra presents a memento to the Chief Justice of India on Sunday. Picture by Manik Bose Ranchi, Aug. 30: Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan today took a dig at high court as well as district court judges for delivering wrong verdicts because of their ignorance of criminal justice laws. Balakrishnan warned that several people wanted to delay the conclusion of criminal cases. "(But) Judges are supposed to prevent the abuse of law by those who want to delay the delivery of judgment," he added, alluding to the judiciary's concern at the high number of pending cases. The Chief Justice was delivering a valedictory address at the conclusion of the first east zone regional judicial conference aimed at equipping senior judicial officers, drawn from seven states — Jharkhand, Bengal, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Sikkim and Bihar — to deliver speedy and quality justice. The three-day programme was organised by National Judicial Academy (NJA), Bhopal, in association with Jharkhand High Court and State Judicial Academy. Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice Gyan Sudha Misra, Patna High Court Chief Justice P.K. Mishra, State Judicial Academy in-charge Justice M.Y. Eqbal, NJA director G. Mohan Gopal were present among others. Balakrishnan pointed out that Section 498 (A) (anti-dowry law) under CrPC was one of the most abused laws. "Judges are simply issuing summons and even warrants without properly verifying who are the accused. I have come across such cases in which the accused, sitting in Australia and other countries, are made accused when the case is lodged for the alleged offence of dowry," he added. Balakrishnan added that the criminal procedure code was amended for the police to follow certain procedures before arrests. "We have come across cases in which even high court judges are ignorant of the legal value of statements recorded before the police under Section 161 of the Evidence Act for delivering judgments," he said. Calling upon lower court judges to be socially sensitive, he asked them to have control over trial proceedings in order to deliver judgments easily. He also asked them to examine eyewitnesses first before examining other witnesses produced by the defence. "Trial and defence lawyers should not terrorise witnesses. A judge should be alert and caring" he maintained. Misra said the deteriorating law and order situation was a heavy burden on the criminal justice system. "It was worrying that the state functionaries were not invoking the provisions of the National Security Act to keep hardened criminals in jail," she added. Stressing on the need for quality justice, Misra said she was receiving complaints that the fast-track court has turned into a "farce track court". Judicial officers, she said, had to wipe out fear that fast-track courts would only convict a person. "They have to strike a balance between expectation of the victims' of crime and the accused," she maintained. Former Supreme Court judge S.B. Sinha pointed out that 70 per cent of all the pending criminal cases were petty offences. "Sociological studies suggest that it is the poor who suffer the most because of delay in the delivery of judgments," he added.

Source : http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090831/jsp/jharkhand/story_11430270.jsp

Hubby tries Sach Ka Saamna with wife, tries to kill her

DARING TRUTH: Rajesh Sonkar was arrested by the police on Tuesday.

Meerut: The popular reality TV show Sach Ka Saamna inspired a 40-year-old man in Meerut to play truth or dare with his wife and when he couldn't handle the truth about his wife's alleged affair, he tried to kill her.

On Sunday morning Rajesh Sonkar took his wife to an isolated spot, 16 km away from Meerut, on the pretext of playing their own version of Sach Ka Saamna.

When the wife confessed that one of their children was not Rajesh's, he slit her throat and fled from the spot.

Fortunately, a passerby found Asha lying in a pool of blood and took her to the hospital where she is now recovering.

The police was informed and Rajesh was arrested on Tuesday after an FIR was lodged.

Rajesh has confessed saying, "Maine usse poocha ki bachhe kiske hain, use ne bola ki ek mera aur ek uska. Hamari ladai ho gayi aur maine use mar diya. (I asked her whether the children were ours, she said one was. We had a fight and I killed her.")

SOURCE :

http://www.sachkasaamna.in/hubby-tries-sach-ka-saamna-with-wife-tries-to-kill-her/

Why supreme court calls 498a as "Legal Terrorism"?

Why supreme court calls 498a as "Legal Terrorism"?

25 reasons "Why IPC 498A is Anti-Social?"
1 It is handled under the Criminal law for marriage related matters and not under Civil Laws.

2 Non-bailable warrant does not require proof before arrest. No investigation necessary. This exposes the vulnerability of the accused taking away their basic human rights.

3 Even those who were not part of the 'day-to-day' family life could be named and arrested on one complaint, which can also include pregnant women and children.

4 Accused is presumed guilty until proven innocent. No where in the world it is so.

5 Gifts are sometimes misunderstood as dowry. Who decides that the gift exchanged were 'gifts or dowry'?

6 It is non-compoundable which means that the complaint can't be taken back that hinders any scope of reconciliation between the couple.

7 After a man is accused of 498A, he will not take his wife back later.

8 Old parents who lived with dignity and respect have to live with the stigma of harassing their daughter-in-law for the rest of their lives.

9 Groom's relatives don't find a suitable bride after they are accused under 498A

10 Most of the cases are filed because the husband refuses to throw his parents out of the house at the wife's demands.

11 Husband's job is at risk when he is accused under 498A who could even be the only breadwinner of the family.

12 The health of the old parents dangerously deteriorates after they are arrested in a 498A case.

13 Some even commit suicide for not able to withstand the depression and frustration of been falsely accused.

14 Old parents after 498a case become very apprehensive and advice their son not to marry again.

15 The family ends up paying a very high price to settle the case, the money that was saved for the parent's health.

16 Most often the lawyers tend to take the family for a ride to extract as much money as possible.

17 The possibility of a woman over-reacting on a trivial matter in the family is never considered as a reason of complaint.

18 A woman tries to get divorce proceedings faster by filing a 498a case even if no dowry was demanded.

19 The witnesses (neighbors) tend to support the woman for not getting into a police case. They even fear of been accused by the woman if they don't support the woman.

20 Some women marries an NRI and slaps a 498A case only to extort large sum of money

21 Even after knowing that the complaint can be false, police tend to support the woman and asks the man to settle the case with a financial compensation.

22 The case can easily linger in the court for years and only the groom's family has to pay the price.

23 498A case can be filed even after the divorce, which only means that the accuser wants to demand money legally apart from maintenance.

24 There is no prohibition clause in the 498A law that would stop women to misuse it.

25 It is nearly impossible to file a case of defamation on the accuser because the police will not register the case and it would be hard to prove it.
Note :The existence of dowry deaths in the rural areas is not the reason for lenient laws as understood by women organizations. The law is already unfair, biased and inapplicable. The true reason for dowry deaths in rural areas is poverty and under-developed civilization. Dowry deaths still flourishing in the rural areas and misuse of 498a law is flourishing in the urban areas. Unwillingness of the women's organization to alter the law so that misuse of law can be stopped is evident. On the contrary, women organizations are planning to strengthen and increase the severity of the 498a law to curb dowry death, which is absolutely preposterous. One must not forget that the chunk of the GDP comes from the urban cities where these laws are prevalently misused. If the misuse of laws still continues then the social infrastructure will collapse which will have a direct unfavorable impact on the country's economy.I f the law can't curb dowry deaths, can't even stop misuse, then what is the use of such a law that causes millions of people to suffer I?

Women watch men strip for fun. Men watch women for darker reasons

For women, it has nothing to do with sex. For men, it is about power

When we watch others shed their clothes, what do we reveal about ourselves?
The Chippendales are in Britain this month to kick off a 20-city European
tour, and the girls at the Spearmint Rhino lap-dancing club are always
available. This week, I have been to both to wonder what – if anything – is
exposed alongside the flesh?

In Edinburgh, the Chippendale audience piles in. It's a Barry Manilow
convention attacked by a hen party and digested by Sex and the City. There
are old women, young women, pretty women and angry women. Everyone is in a
group – there are no solitary customers – and everyone wants to sit together
at the front, close to the nudity. I expect to see women climbing on to the
chandelier, like bats crawling up a wall. They are excited – and showing
that they are excited. Their behaviour is precisely opposite to what women
are supposed to do when they like men.

What are you here for, I ask one group of teenagers. "Naked men!" they
scream. What about you, I ask another lady, who must be 80. "Antique
furniture is wonderful to see on stage," she quips.

The hall goes dark and a voice shouts out: "Welcome to the ultimate girls'
night out in Edinburgh! Don't forget to visit the merchandising stall on
your way out! Are you ready?" Yes, we scream, and out come the Chippendales,
dressed as builders. They swing their thighs, and look ecstatic, like
cartoon heroes.

It feels joyous. I am clapping. I don't know why I am clapping, or when I
started. And I don't think we are clapping the Chippendales as they churn
through every hackneyed female fantasy – the policeman, the fireman, the
soldier, the gangster. We are clapping ourselves, because we can be
lecherous and bestial, and we can scream it.

The Chippendales walk out into the audience. I was expecting the bolder
women, the ones who leap into the air to catch the Chippendales' T-shirts
like expert netball players, to lunge and go for tongue kisses and intimate
gropes. But it doesn't happen. When we are offered them at close range, we
go shy. Instead of running up to them, we move away. We seem to be avoiding
them. There is not a single woman here who actually wants to have sex with a
Chippendale. We are all mouth, and no panties. Sex has left the building. We
want cuddles, not tongues.

The Chippendales respond by becoming avuncular, and gracious. They hug us
and kiss our hands. They have turned from sex gods into kindly male
relatives. Outside I meet a woman who jumped for a T-shirt, fighting off
other women to get it. "I'm not that bothered about it now," she tells me,
"Do you want it?"

It is a fantasy, and the women here know it is. They seem happy, almost
relieved, to let it go. It was a day trip to Disneyland where Mickey Mouse
has monster abs.

The Spearmint Rhino Club in London, by contrast, is subterranean and
windowless. There are a few men sitting alone, watching a naked woman dance.
It is a pensive dance, oozing melancholy. Around the room, perhaps 20 young
women, in tiny dresses and porn-star shoes, vie for the men's attention. It
doesn't feel joyous; if the rhino had a face, it would be weeping.

The financial dynamic is different. The women pay the club £85 a night, but
will earn £20 for a lap-dance and £400 for a "sit-down", where they
accompany the men to a private booth and dance for up to an hour. To earn
the money, they have to beg. They have to walk up to the men and persuade
them to pay the cash. They all have different techniques. One smiles from a
distance. One bounces down on to a man's lap. One licks her lips.

I watch an elderly man with the face of Count Dracula holding hands with a
gloriously beautiful young black woman. He hasn't booked a dance yet but she
is holding hands with him in hope. He squeezes her thigh. She laughs.
Another man watches a blonde pole-dancing on the bar. He is staring at her,
but yawns openly. She smiles, puts her fingers to her lips, and says,
"Shush".

The manager brings two girls over to speak to me. One is about 30, with a
beautiful cat-like face. The other is younger and has the open, perfect face
of a child. Her breasts are totally exposed. Do they ever get aroused
dancing? "Never," says the child-like one. "It is like any other job," says
the other, "You have your down days and your up days."

"There are four types of men who come here," she says. "There is the one who
thinks he will meet his next wife. There is the curious man. There is the
businessman who brings his clients to nail a deal. And then there is the man
who never spends any money." She gestures towards Count Dracula. "He is here
four times a week and never pays for a lap-dance." He is still touching the
black girl's thigh.

So why do they do it? "The money," says the younger girl. Sometimes she
makes £2,000 a night. What do you enjoy about it? "Nothing," she says. "You
imagine hearing the same conversation every night for four years. Shall I
ask you what your tattoo means 20 times a night?" And why do the men do it?
"To pull a stripper is on every young guy's list," says the older girl. "The
older men know we will talk to them. They have their pick. It's a power
trip."

I didn't want to come to a conclusion as prosaic as Chippendales good,
lap-dancing rhinos bad. Even as I watched the Chippendales play dirty
cowboys, I wondered why they were doing it. But at least they were
worshipped. The power dynamic at Spearmint Rhino seems entirely different.
The men can make these beautiful women compete for them, when in real life
they never would. There was no joy or even appreciation. As I leave, I
wonder – have I seen a dark part of human sexuality, sliding wonkily down a
pole?

*This week Tanya watched* the Mariinsky Ballet Company perform Swan Lake at
the Royal Opera House. "Ballet dancers don't eat. Were their exquisite
movements really shouting, "I want some chips!"? *She read* Vanity Fair.
"Michael Jackson is still completely dead".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/aug/17/tanya-gold-stripping

Deport order on model’s husband

*Panaji, Aug. 20 *(PTI): Model Ujjwala Raut's estranged British husband was
today asked to leave India within 72 hours in a deportation order that he
alleged was meant to "victimise" him.

"I am being victimised by my wife and the Indian government which has
revoked my PIO card without following the due process," Craig Maxwell Sterry
said after receiving the deportation order at the office of the
superintendent of police here.

Craig, a model-turned-entrepreneur, had gone missing since August 10 when he
had submitted his Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card. The deportation order
follows the Union home ministry's move to revoke his PIO status on the
ground of "public interest".

Craig, whose five-year-old marriage with the model is on the rocks, filed a
plea before the Goa bench of Bombay High Court saying the revocation was
mala fide and didn't involve public interest.

But the court declined to give him any immediate relief and said it would
hear his plea only on August 28.

The divorce petition of the couple, who have a three-year-old daughter, is
pending before a family court in Mumbai, where Ujjwala comes from.

Today, Craig admitted he had been on the run for the past 10 days, but said
he did so to stay on in India and fight for his daughter's custody.

"I was on the run as I knew that the police would deport me. I want to fight
the case in Indian courts and stay back as I have to take the custody of my
daughter. I have been a good father and I will try to get the custody of my
daughter," he added.

Questioning the deportation order, Craig said he had no criminal proceedings
against him in India or anywhere in the world. Ujjwala, who won the Miss
India title in 1996 and has walked the ramp for several iconic designers in
shows at home and abroad, couldn't be contacted for comment.

A senior Goa police officer said both Craig and Ujjwala had lodged
complaints of misbehaviour 10 days ago. "We had received complaints from the
husband and wife," the officer added.

Craig's PIO status was cancelled late last month, after which he appeared
before the police. "He came to meet me with photocopies of his PIO card and
passport. When I insisted on the original documents, he went back promising
to return in two hours but never turned up," superintendent of police
(foreigners' branch) Tony Fernandes had said earlier in the day before Craig
came to take the order.

Later, on August 10, Craig was found at his residence at Aldonha and was
brought to the police station.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090821/jsp/nation/story_11390406.jsp

Dowry : A necessary evil

EVERYBODY LOVES to hate dowry but the women's organisations know that without dowry they will have to shut shop in no time. So continuing dowry in its current form is an essential as the survival of woman's rights itself.

Dowry- a word which has been used too much these days to basically fund things from Toilets to biased laws for women, is a great revenue generator for the women organisations. Everything for women in India is paid by the government or husbands because women are always said to have to borne the "brunt of dowry."

Dowry as a word comes up only when the

marriage goes sour. The woman or her family never ever speaks or mentions about dowry when a marriage is going happily. Only when the marriage starts going sour does dowry harassment comes up all of a sudden. In this latest case, an Orissa IPS officer has been booked for dowry harassment using standard preformatted allegations by his wife, who now after 1.5 years of marriage claims that her father paid 40 lakh as dowry during the marriage.

Nobody knows how much truth is there to these allegations since 98 per cent of cases are false to begin with but let us for a second assume that dowry was indeed given or received.

So why did this self respecting bold woman keep her mouth shut at the time of marriage when a cash transaction to the tune of 40 lakh was done? Why did she not notify the Income tax when this black money changed hands? Why did she not implicate her husband for taking dowry and her father for giving dowry at or before the marriage itself. Why did she not report to the NCW that dowry to the tune of Rs 40 Lakh was changing hands? Nobody forced her to marry a man who was dowry hungry . Was she forcibly married? If yes, then it is her family or her father who forced her to marry an IPS officcer, so will the father be convicted of forcibly marrying off his daughter.

In this case who is the actual culprit, the man who is alleged to have demanded the dowry (The husband) or the man who arranged for such a huge amount of money to pay the dowry (the father) or the daughter who knew that both the husband and her father are committing a crime and still kept quiet was an accomplice in the crime.

Fast forward one year from the date of the marriage. The marriage starts to go sour and the woman realises all of a sudden that she will not be able to continue the marriage due to differences between her and her husband. Now she realises that if she goes back to her house her father will be at loss because he allegedly paid Rs 40 lakh as dowry. So after 1.5 years of marriage, she brings out the dowry sword and claims that her father paid Rs 40 lakh as dowry when she knew this all along and was herself an accomplice in the crime.

Dowry is nothing but an eyewash. The Indian laws have totally failed to eradicate the dowry system because the Indian Anti Dowry laws ultimately have always trapped the good people who have never taken dowry in the first place and has allowed the bad people to get away.

 

The Anti Dowry law has been a total failure because it has never targeted the root cause of the problem, "the exchange of dowry itself," instead it has always tried to cut the leaves of the tree and tried to handle complaints of dowry after three to four years of marriage, when the marriage starts going sour. If the law would have caught the father paying the dowry, the husband receiving the dowry or the daughter who was an accomplice in the crime right at the time of marriage, then the entire dowry harassment drama would never have happened.

 

To really eradicate dowry we need to implement the below steps. The steps are already present as laws in the Indian Penal Code in books but have never been implemented in real life for the fear of eradicating dowry altogether, which will lead to women organisations to shut shop in India .

a) To prosecute the dowry givers. Prosecuting dowry givers will instill fear in the minds of people while giving dowry and they will then take a strong stand against giving any dowry. The society will slowly realise that the dowry hungry husbands will have to sit at home unmarried for life because no-one will give dowry because of the strict laws. They will ultimately have to marry in dowry free marriages. But unfortunately, implementation of DP3 act (for giving dowry) is seldom done in India. Dowry giving is never considered a crime although the IPC has punished for five years for any person found guilty of giving dowry.

b) Stop extravagant marriages and have hotline numbers for people to report dowry exchanges. Both the giver and taker families including the bride and groom must be punished for indulging in criminal activities. But marriages worth crores happen every day in India and the government does not bat an eyelid. Organisations like Save Indian family foundation had on many occasions demanded a hotline where Anti dowry activists could report dowry exchanges in marriage for the government to act the prevention of the dowry exchange but the government has never created such a hotline. Dowry exchanges are allowed to happen in open daylight. The government and women organisations look the other way when dowry changes hands and then wants to punish only the husband when the marriage goes sour for the act of taking dowry, while the dowry giver and the women who knows both the taker and giver and is an accomplice of the crime is treated as the victim .

c) Marriages must always with registered in court with the seal of a dowry prohibition officer where the families must swear that no dowry was given or taken. In these marriages, when the bride and groom take a solemn vow that no dowry has been exchanged 498A will not be applicable. Then we would stop seeing cases where the dowry angle is brought only when the marriage starts going sour after a few years .But if this happens then women's rights will take a severe blow because there will be no Dowry harassment cases at all to sow the world and no cases will lead to no funding. So this is also not implemented by the government or the women organisations.

d) Misusers of the law must be strictly punished and this includes men also from the brides family.

In India, the only set of people who want to eradicate dowry from the face of the country are organisations like Save Indian Family Foundation. Women organisations on the other hand know that once dowry is completely eradicated, they will have to shut their women's rights shop and move elsewhere. So nor the government nor the women organisation want to attack the root of the problem "The act of dowry exchange itself."

source : http://www.merinews.com/article/dowry--a-necessary-evil/15780631.shtml

'Men to meet in Shimla for equal rights'

CHENNAI: A group of men from Tamil Nadu is setting off for Shimla to participate in a meeting on August 15 for "equal rights and freedom from harassment from women".

Keshava Vishwanathan, an IT professional who is going to attend the meeting organized by Save Indian Family Foundation, said he felt that in many instances Indian law favoured wives. "Be it in the case of custody of children or allegations of domestic violence and dowry harassment, the law generally takes the side of women," he claims. "Some of the laws are very rigid, and we have found cases foisted on us," Vishwanathan said. He added that they were not women haters'.

Another participant, Manoj David said they were trying to "raise the issue of freedom and dignity of harassed husbands". About 19 men from Chennai, Madurai and Coimbatore would be part of the day-long meeting in Shimla, in which more than 100 men were participating. "More than 100 men, representatives of 30,000 other harassed husbands from across the country, will meet to come up with strategies to take on their wives," he said.

Virag Dhulia, a senior member of Save Indian Family Foundation, said the latest report on the suicide rate of men across India was an indicator of the harassment of men. Around 1.2 lakh harassed' husbands in India have committed suicide in last four years, he claimed, citing figures from the National Crime Records Bureau. "This is an alarming number. We're meeting at Shimla, not to draw a gender-dividing line. We want to discuss a social issue and find solutions as the country is seeing a large number of divorces," he said.

Some of issues they will discuss include a separate men's welfare ministry on the lines of the women and child welfare ministry, equal taxation for men and women, change in inheritance laws, amendment to the domestic violence prevention law, and mandatory joint custody of children for divorced couples. "We'll also demand pre-litigation counseling before grant of divorce, an end to police brutalities and judicial reforms to help address the social issues," Dhulia said.

According to data available with SIFF, a total of 9,000 divorce cases were filed in Delhi, 7,500 in Mumbai and 5,000 cases in Bangalore and 4,000 cases Chennai in 2008.

 

Source  : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4861343.cms

Kicking daughter-in-law will not amount to cruelty: Court

Kicking daughter-in-law will not amount to cruelty: Court

J. Venkatesan

However, taking away wedding gifts is "breach of trust" under Section 406 IPC, says Supreme Court

New Delhi: The action of woman merely kicking her daughter-in-law with her leg or threatening her with divorce will not come within the meaning of "cruelty" under Section 498 A of the Indian Penal Code, the Supreme Court has held.

A Bench of Justices S.B. Sinha and Cyriac Joseph said that the allegation that the mother-in-law poisoned the ears of her son against his wife and gave her two used suits of her daughter could not be said to be offences punishable under Section 498A IPC.

However, if the mother-in-law took away the gifts given to the couple at the time of marriage, it would amount to "breach of trust" as specified under Section 406 IPC.

Section 498-A IPS says: "Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such a woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine."

Quoting an earlier judgment, the Bench said: "The object of this provision is prevention of the dowry menace. But many instances have come to light where the complaints are not bona fide and have been filed with an oblique motive. Acquittal of the accused does not in all cases wipe out the ignominy suffered during and prior to trial.

"The object is to strike at the roots of dowry menace. But by misuse of the provision, a new legal terrorism can be unleashed. The provision is intended to be used as a shield and not as an assassin's weapon."

Appeal against order

In the instant case, Monica filed cases alleging cruelty and breach of trust against her South-Africa based husband Vikas Sharma and his parents Bhaskarlal and Vimla. Monica was Vikas' second wife. He had divorced his first wife by whom he had two children. Monica filed cases under IPC Sections 498-A and 406.

A Patiala trial court issued summons against her husband and in-laws. The Delhi High Court dismissed the appeal filed by the husband and in-laws challenging the trial court's decision. The present appeals were directed against this order.

"These litigations, if a holistic view is taken, depict a sad state of affairs, namely that the respondent [Monica], on the one hand, intends to take all coercive measures to secure the presence of her husband and the appellants in India in various cases filed by her and, on the other hand, she had repeatedly been making attempts at conciliation," the Bench said.

Disposing of the appeals, the Bench said: "The only allegation which brings the case within the purview of Section 406 is that the mother-in-law had taken all the gifts/cash given by the invitees/guests. We, therefore, are of the opinion that prima facie a case under Section 406 of the IPC has been made out only against the mother-in-law.

It is clarified that the proceedings can continue only against the mother-in-law, that too in respect of Section 406 IPC only."

Corrections and Clarifications

It is Section 498-A IPC and not Section 498-A IPS as given in the fourth paragraph of a report "Kicking daughter-in-law will not amount to cruelty: [Supreme] Court" (August 6, 2009).

 

source : http://www.hindu.com/2009/08/06/stories/2009080662392000.htm

No cruelty by husband if mum kicks his wife, says SC

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has ruled that a husband cannot be prosecuted for 'cruelty' towards his wife under section 498(A) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) merely because his mother or other members of the family kicked her or, for that matter, threatened her with divorce.

Giving an interpretation of the term 'cruelty', which often crops up in matrimonial disputes, the court further said that if the mother-in-law constantly gives sermons to the daughter-in-law or treats her shabbily by giving her used dress suits, it would not invite prosecution under section 498(A).

But if the mother-in-law takes away gifts given to the couple at the time of marriage (stridhan), it would amount to 'breach of trust' as specified under section 406 of the IPC, a bench comprising justice SB Sinha and justice Cyriac Joseph said.

The ruling came on an appeal filed by a South Africa-based non-resident Indian and his family in a matrimonial dispute case in India.

"Allegations that the mother-in-law kicked her daughter-in-law with her legs and told her that her [the wife's] mother is a liar may make out some other offence but not the one punishable under section 498(A)," the justices said.

"Similarly, her [the wife's] allegation that the mother-in-law poisoned the ears of her son [the husband] against his wife; she gave two used lady suits of her daughter to the complainant [the daughter-in-law], and has been giving perpetual sermons to the complainant could not be said to be offences punishable under section 498(A)," the court said while defining cruelty in the matrimonial context.

"Even threatening that her son may be divorced for the second time could not bring out the offence under section 498(A) of the IPC," the bench said.

 

source : http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_no-cruelty-by-husband-if-mum-kicks-his-wife-says-sc_1279706

Special Report: Husbands in India to Protest Unjust Laws They Claim Are Skewed Toward Women (But Are They?)

During India's Independence Day this weekend, thousands of men will protest a judicial system they say too often presumes them guilty when it comes to dowry and domestic violence. Read our in-depth report …

By Liza Porteus Viana

© Shutterstock

As India kicks off its Independence Day celebrations this weekend, thousands of husbands claiming harassment and men's rights activists will converge upon Shimla to protest what they say is a skewed justice system and laws that presume them guilty until proven innocent when it comes to crimes involving women.

Men are protesting gender-biased laws, the Domestic Violence Act and the misuse of dowry laws. However, women's rights advocates say the perceived injustices that men in India face are nothing compared to the discrimination, oppression and violence women in India endure on a daily basis.

"Gender-based discrimination and violence is so entrenched in Indian society — about two-thirds of married women in India are victims of domestic violence," Aruna Kashyap, researcher for the women's rights division for Human Rights Watch, told wowOwow.com. "Dowry deaths are on the rise.

But as Kashyap explains it, laws against domestic violence and dowry help give many women "the hope of a life with some dignity or justice."

The Save Indian Family Foundation (SIFF) is one of about 14 groups taking part in a national conference this weekend to push for men's rights. They will meet Indian leaders to determine how to expose police brutality, human rights violations and corruption in the judiciary. Both men and women are victims, according to SIFF, but a big problem is blatant misuse of domestic violence and dowry laws to unjustly punish men.

In India, the payment of a dowry was prohibited in 1961 but is still rampant. More rules, such as 498a of the Indian Penal Code, were later enacted to make it easier for the wife to seek redress from potential harassment by the husband's family. A "dowry death" is the death of a woman caused by unusual burns or bodily injury within seven years of marriage. Tragically, many women are victim to "bride burning," or being set on fire because of insufficient dowries. The guilty are required to be punished with no fewer than seven years in prison. In 2001, Indian husbands and in-laws allegedly killed nearly 7,000 women over "inadequate dowry payments," according to Indian government statistics reported in the BBC. Indian government figures from the National Crime Records Bureau also show that in 2007, there were 8,093 cases of reported dowry deaths, with a 33 percent conviction rate. There were almost 76,000 cases of reported cruelty toward women by husbands and relatives, with a nearly 21 percent conviction rate. Dowries have become such a horrible ordeal that female feoticide (women aborting their female fetuses) is a well-known, genocide-level problem in India.

But some say dowry laws are misused by women and their families. One site, 498a.org, has been set up to expose "the rampant misuse of 498a (Dowry Law misuse) by unscrupulous women to extort money and harass their husband's entire extended family." It also says a 2005 domestic violence law "grossly violates the liberty and dignity of an average man and his family members. The law appears to be a blessing for people in abusive or violent relationships. However, a careful analysis reveals that, under the ploy of 'women and children welfare,' this law is yet another misguided attempt to enact legislation to grant women legal supremacy over men and to create a society where men are deprived of their rights."

SIFF President Anil Kumar told wOw that many accused men, women and children are often abused, threatened, extorted and jailed without trial. His group points out that male suicides are higher than that of females within marriage, and wants laws to consider the accused "innocent until proven guilty." SIFF also wants laws to say people can only be jailed after an investigation provides sufficient evidence of guilt. Kumar said the Domestic Violence Act should be gender neutral and that law abusers should be severely punished. He says because of strong support from "radical feminist organizations" funded by American and United Nations entities for such laws, many Indian politicians are loathe to wade into such issues. 

"Indian politicians are afraid of backlash from these organizations, if they change these laws," he explains. "They feel, if there is agitation by the well-funded feminists, then they will lose votes in elections. So, the officials and politicians are stuck in the middle and are in turn paying a heavy price."

'Women Are Still Suffering'

But Kashyap says the Indian government has to do more — not less — to support structures for women who want to launch violence or harassment complaints, and make the criminal justice system, particularly the police, more gender sensitive. 

"For every man or his family that sees a prison, thousands go scot-free in India because women experiencing violence face multiple layers of disempowerment and barriers to seeking justice," Kashyap explains, and goes on to say that many women who complain are thrown out of their matrimonial homes. "And we are not even getting into the physical and mental anguish of women who are left with scars for life."

Indian feminist writer Sarojini Sahoo tells wOw that one cannot forget that female foeticide, bride burning and chastity belt use are still rampant in India. In fact, recent research published in The Lancet journal shows that in 2001, fire-related deaths accounted for two percent of all deaths in India — six times that reported by police. About 106,000 of them were women, mostly between the ages of 15 and 34. UNICEF says that since 1991 and with the proliferation of mobile sex selection clinics that perform selective abortions, 80 percent of districts in India have recorded a declining sex ratio with the state of Punjab being the worst, given the rise of female foeticide.

"Some husbands may be harassed (I would like to say 'annoyed' instead of 'harassed'), because they want more from their wives," Sahoo says, noting that many men in today's Indian culture still expect women to manage their household, motherhood and "the duty of a submissive wife extra to their outside burden" of working outside the home.

"There may be some cases of 'male harassment,' but what are the actual figures?" Sahoo asks. "Women are still suffering. Women rights are still neither adequately understood nor granted. The personal or family-bound or parliamentary women's rights are still … farce."

Meanwhile, SIFF and its allies hope to get 40,000 people to attend this weekend's protest.

The current judicial system "is against cardinal principles of natural justice that everyone is innocent until proven guilty," Kumar said. "Hence, these laws are fascist in nature and these are not consistent with democratic processes."

Source : http://www.wowowow.com/relationships/india-independence-day-harassed-men-protest-unjust-laws-dowry-deaths-domestic-violence-womens-rights-358117

Boys fight for freedom!

Rage. That's what one gets to see in the eyes of harassed husbands and men's rights activists in the city, who, outraged by laws, which they claim

Boys fight for freedom! (Getty Images)

are unfair, are now getting ready to voice their protest on Independence Day this year.

"We are abstaining from Independence Day celebrations this year to protest the unfair laws that favour women," says Suresh, the convenor of the Chennai Chapter of the Save Indian Family Foundation (SIFF), an organisation fighting for men's rights and family harmony under the aegis of the Save Indian Family movement.

Men's groups across the country have been protesting gender-biased laws in general and the Domestic Violence Act and the 498A, in particular.

Citing an instance, he says, "At present, Indian law considers adultery as a crime when committed by Indian men, but not so when committed by women. This is blatant discrimination against men. Also, Indian law exempts women from punishment for domestic violence. The laws have been pampering women by not according them any duties, while creating obligations for men. By this decidedly anti-male mindset of the law, men in India have started to feel that it's perhaps a crime to be born a male in India."

Kumar Jahgirdar, the president of Children's Rights Initiative For Shared Parenting (CRISP), which is working to ensure the rights of children, points out another hotly contested issue. "Women's rights are different from children's rights. What's more, the rights of both these categories are not always compatible. While remarriage might be in the interest of a woman who has divorced her husband, it may not be in the best interest of her child. So, ideally, there should be a separate ministry for children to look into issues concerning their rights. However, in India, that isn't the case. Children constitute forty percent of the population and there is no separate ministry for them. A child has to have access to both parents because nature has provided some unique qualities to the father which cannot be substituted by the mother, and vice-versa."

Giving out details of what SIFF plans to do on Independence Day, Suresh says, "This Independence Day, our members in Chennai will distribute flyers at the Marina Beach in the morning, elucidating our problems, cause and activities. We are also planning to present a memorandum to the Governor and the Law Minister of the state."

Also, there is bound to be action at the national level as well as the Save Indian Family Movement's second national conference, is to be held on August 15 and 16 at Shimla.

Says Virag, an office-bearer of SIFF, "The first one was held in Goa last year. There are 14 non-governmental organisations affiliated to the SIFF across the country and at least 100 active leaders from different parts of the country will be attending this meet to discuss ways to further intensify our agitation and reiterate our demand for a National Commission for Men and Men's Welfare Ministry."

Informs Suresh,"This time, nine members from Chennai will be participating in the national conference in Shimla."

Volunteers from various other organisations such as the Family Cultural Forum and CRISP will also join SIFF's members in distributing pamphlets on Independence Day.

It seems that men have finally taken the fight for freedom from harassment to the next level!

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4859757.cms