NEW DELHI, Oct 18 —Laws against violence at home may or may not have come to the rescue of battered women, but some of them have been accused of abusing them to get an easy divorce or settle other little domestic disputes.

"As the laws are 'tilted' in the women's favour, it has led to a lot of abuse by certain sections," says Ms Madhu Kishwar, Editor of a women's magazine, "Manushi".

In a country where a woman is burnt every two hours, it is more of a question of underuse of the law, but the fact can't be denied that certain provisions of the law are being abused to settle personal scores, counter a few other women activists.

Laws against domestic violence like Section 304B (pertaining to dowry death), Section 498A (wilful, mental and physical cruelty) and Section 460 (criminal breach of trust) have created quite a few controversies since their inception.

"Although quite a number of women still don't have access to the law, incidents of abuse of the aforesaid laws are no longer an exception. Under pressure from lawyers, police and parents, many women are using these laws to settle civil problems like maladjustment, divorce which inturn intimidates the man," she says.

"Some elements have emerged within the system which are misusing the law," says Ms Sudha Tiwari of Shakti Shalini, an NGO which deals with dowry cases.

Thus while 80 per cent of women are benefiting from the provisions, another 20 per cent are abusing them for personal gains.

"The laws are yet to be applied in a country like India. But in metros, it is true that the police receives both cases of abuse and misuse, says Mr Amod Kanth, Joint Commissioner of Police, Southern Range, Delhi.

But does misuse entail that the laws safeguarding the interest of the women be done away with.

Women activists say that the law cannot be removed, it only needs to be strengthened.

"Sitting in a metropolis like Delhi, it's easy to pass a judgement that laws are being misused. But we should look at the larger reality where the laws are yet to reach the minimum standards of use," says lawyer Flavia Agnes.

Illiteracy among women is still rampant so where is the question of misuse. We have to see the larger national perspective, she says.

Agrees Additional Sessions Judge Mamata Sehgal saying, "We don't need to change such important laws in a country where women are still to get an equal standing. Dowry was and still continues to be a social malice.

The answer to this problem can be arrived at by changing the narrow psyche of the people. Instead of spending a fortune on the pomp and ritual of the wedding ceremony of a daughter, if parents educate their children on socially relevant values, such cases will gradually cease to exist, says Ms Sehgal, who is also the in charge of the Delhi Legal Aid Service Authority.

But for now activists say that counselling services both within the police station and by NGOs should be strengthened so that victims understand the course to be taken.

The law should be properly applied to a case and not twisted to achieve a speedier action, say activists.

"Most women are not even open to the idea of registering a case. And even when they do go to the police station, they are encouraged to file a dowry case even if the matter does not pertain to it. Thus instead of receiving the proper counselling, they are pushed in a different direction, says Ms Tiwari.

Lawyers and the police concede that they need to make adjustments within their system so that the needy get the benefits of the law.