Vineeta Pandey

President Pratibha Devisingh Patil has alleged that some women were misusing the anti-dowry law to settle scores with their husbands.

“Some surveys conclude that 6 to 10% of dowry complaints are false and were registered primarily to settle scores,” Patil said at a conference of lady lawyers and lady teachers on Justice for Women’, in Yavatmal, Maharashtra.

She asked lawyers to ensure that the provisions of law were not misused this way.  The National Crime Record Bureau says 2,15,733 people were arrested in 2007 under anti-dowry laws. But 85-94% of those arrested were acquitted.

Women activists, however, beg to differ. “We cannot support her. There’s no proper implementation of laws, especially concerning women,” said Sudha Sundaram of All India Democratic Women’s Association.

“No woman likes to break her family. She approaches court only when she cannot bear the torture any more. However, many times women don’t know the exact provisions of the law under which they should seek redressal,” said Girija Vyas, National Commission for Women chairperson.

Supreme Court lawyer Priya Hingorani said only a small percentage of women “possibly in the urban areas” were misusing the laws. “Many women who are victims are not even aware of the law’s provisions. Slack investigation and delay in justice leads to low conviction rate,” Hingorani said.

“There are more male judges than women, more policemen than policewomen. By sheer numbers men control law. It is wrong for the president to comment like this,” said Supreme Court lawyer Meenakshi Lekhi.

Rashtrapati Bhawan sources said the president’s comments were probably based on some instances she may have noticed.  However, organisations like Save Indian Family Foundation (SIFF), campaigning aggressively against misuse of dowry and other women-related laws, have found support.