Delhi: The Supreme Court has refused to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking the appointment of an expert committee to review and amend the existing dowry and domestic violence laws to prevent abuse. The Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear the plea. “Society needs to change, nothing else can be done,” said a bench comprising Justices BV Nagaratna and Satish Chandra Sharma.
The petition was filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, who filed a petition in Bengaluru on the death of techie Atul Subhash, who committed suicide following a false complaint filed by his wife and her family, seeking the formation of an expert committee to review and amend the dowry and domestic violence laws. Guidelines should be adopted to prevent misuse of the existing laws. The petition was filed demanding that the list of gifts, money, etc. given during marriage be accurately recorded and kept with the marriage certificate and that the government should direct it.
“The Dowry Prohibition Act, Section 498A of the IPC, is meant to protect married women from domestic violence such as dowry. But today, women see it as a weapon to vent their anger at their husbands and their families and thereby trap them in the net of the law. Due to this, the chances of even the real culprits escaping are increasing. This is not just a matter of Atul, there have been many tragic incidents where men have been unnecessarily made criminals. The complainant pointed out in the petition that the misuse of dowry laws defeats the very purpose of such legal provisions.
