New Delhi, 27 January 2025- The Supreme Court has rejected the petition seeking reforms in dowry and domestic violence laws. The Supreme Court, while rejecting the petition, said that for this the society will have to change, we cannot do anything about it. The petition said that the existing dowry and domestic violence laws are being misused, so reforms should be made in them.
The petition demanded the formation of a committee to review the laws
Recently, an engineer in Bangalore committed suicide. The engineer had accused his wife of harassing him legally and the engineer had also alleged loopholes in the law. After the suicide of the engineer, a debate broke out in the society regarding the misuse of dowry and domestic violence laws. After which a petition was filed in the Supreme Court demanding reforms in the laws. The petition was filed by lawyer Vishal Tiwari. The petition demanded the formation of a committee comprising former Supreme Court judges, lawyers and legal experts, which would review the existing dowry and domestic violence laws. While rejecting the petition, the bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra clearly said that ‘society has to change and the court cannot do anything in this.’
These suggestions were given in the petition
It was also demanded in the petition that such a provision should be made that while registering the marriage, the goods and gifts received in the marriage should also be registered. Also, the comments made by the Supreme Court in a case regarding section 498A of the IPC in the year 2010 should also be implemented. The petition said that by improving the laws, the lives of innocent men can be saved and the purpose of this law will also be fulfilled.
‘Law has become a weapon to get illegal demands fulfilled’
The petition said that ‘Dowry Prevention Act and Section 498A of IPC were made to protect married women and to stop their harassment, but in our country these laws have been made a weapon to get illegal demands accepted and to put pressure on the family of men. Due to this, even genuine cases are seen with suspicion. There have been many such incidents in which men have been falsely implicated in dowry cases and it has led to a very painful end. This has also raised questions on our judicial system and crime investigation system. The petition said that ‘This is not just the case of Atul Subhash but lakhs of men are committing suicide due to such reasons. Due to the misuse of dowry laws, the real purpose of these laws has been left behind somewhere.’
