MOSCOW, August 1 (RIA Novosti) - Indian government considers introducing amendments to the country’s controversial anti-dowry law that was designed to protect women against dowry-related violence but is, instead, increasingly used to harass husbands and their relatives, according to the Times of India citing the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
Should changes be introduced, women will be held liable and will be subject to punishment or penalty if they make false accusations. Coincidently, the anti-dowry law could also be amended so as to provide wider definition of what amounts to dowry.
In early July, India’s Supreme Court has ruled that women should provide evidence that they are being harassed. Police should not automatically arrests those accused of dowry-related violence, pointing out that such claims are often made by “disgruntled wives” and not women in dire need of protection.
Dowry, often used to extort money by the groom’s family, has been banned in India in the 1960s. The Dowry Prohibition Act defines dowry as “any property or valuable security given or agreed to be given either directly or indirectly” by one party to a marriage or their parents.
Around 8,000 women were killed in India in 2013 when their families failed to produce substantial dowry, according to Washington Post citing official statistics.
