Total Pageviews

Join SIF yahoogroup, get answers..

Join SIF yahoogroup"

Friday, May 30, 2008

Mumbai: Awareness program in front of Family court(7th June,10AM)

Protect Indian Family Foundation(PIFF), NGO, Mumbai is conducting an awareness program- ‘Effects of 498a, Dowry Act & Domestic Violence Act on Indian Families’.

We will gather in front of Family court and distribute pamphlets, this pamphlet will outline the irreversible ill effects of the family breaker laws like IPC 498a, DV Act(PWDVA), Dowry Prohibition Act, etc.. All the members are requested to wear the PIF T-shirt which will be available near the venue, or at our Mulund office in advance.

Venue
This program is planned to be conducted at the family court, Near Bandra Kurla Complex(BKC), Bandra, Mumbai, from 10 A.M to 2 P.M, on 7th June, 2008.

Tel: 9869323538(Mr.M.R.Gupta), 9821414336(Mr.P.R.Gokul)
*******************************************
Please forward these details to your media and other contacts who may be concerned and interested in this event.

We expect around 100 members to gather. The objective of this program is to bring Awareness about the effect of laws concerning families(IPC 498a, Domestic Violence Act, Dowry Prohibition law etc.), which is wrecking many families in India and abroad. Representatives from media also may be present to effectively spread the awareness to people who cannot be present physically at the venue.

This event is being planned by Protect Indian Family (www.protectindianfamily.org), Mumbai, NGO-Member of Save Indian Family (http://www.saveindianfamily.org/).


Supported by :

http://www.saveindianfamily.org/
http://www.mynation.net/
http://www.protectindianfamily.org/
http://www.savefamily.org/
http://www.asha-kiran.org/
http://www.sahanaindia.org/
http://www.ghrs.in/
http://www.498a.org/
http://www.siftimes.com/
http://www.forgottenwomen.org/

Warm Regards

************

Report of this event(and pamphlet)

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Impending 498a?, send this petition(alternative/in addition to AB)

If you or your family member is fearing an arrest (pre or post 498a), here is what you might want to consider trying -

Write a short letter to the commissioner of police with a copy to the local police station (copy to others as you see fit and keep a copy with yourself, give one to the neighbour) on the following lines -

To
The Commissioner of Police

Respected Mr Commissioner -

We, the undersigned, residents of xxx, have been (or likely to be) accused of unsubstantiated harassment allegations by yyyy. We hereby pledge full cooperation in any investigation the police needs to conduct in this matter.

In this connection, we would like to bring to your kind attention the judgment of Supreme Court in the Joginder Kumar vs State of UP (copy of which is enclosed, also attach these Police circulars from Delhi & Hyderabad Police heads) and the recent advisory on 498a issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs to all State and Union territory chief secretaries(issued in October 2009, giving directions that arrests should not be made in case of IPC 498a cases, and that investigations as per guidelines should be conducted). Since we are pledging full cooperation in your investigation, we request an assurance from you that officials from your department will not arrest the undersigned without sufficient cause and without thorough investigation of the facts.
Your faithfully
XYZ

PS: Address this petition/letter to the Commissioner of Police and Copy it to the Investigation Officer, the concerned local Police station's in charge/senior officer, DCP/ACP/SP of the police station's Zone, DGO of the State, Law/Home Minister of the State and Center, Prime Minister, President, Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ruling party leaders, Opposition Leaders, local MPs/MLAs, Collector, The Private Secretary to Minister-Ministry of social Justice & Empowerment, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi .

All these higher ups has a good chance to mark your memos/letters downwards, which will eventually reach the concerned IO/Station In charge asking them for status and specific questions, this will put tremendous pressure on these lower officials and they will have to adhere to what is legal and proper

Even if the higher ups do not take any action, the lower officials see their names in the "Copy To" area and start behaving properly!. This is why your petitions should be marked to as many officials and luminaries as possible - Pressure from the system , will ensure justice!

See more inputs at this post: http://at498a.blogspot.com/2008/04/arrest-guidelines-in-case-of.html
Also refer http://commandos.in/wiki/sif/activism/legis/how-to-write-letter-to-lawmakers

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Government of India : online Grievance forum

Lets put our grievances in this site for whatever its worth.

*****************

Dear Friends,

Government of India has an online Grievance forum at http://darpg-grievance.nic.in/

Can you imagine this is happening in INDIA ?

The govt. wants people to use this tool to highlight the problems they faced while dealing with Government officials or departments like Passport Office, Electricity board, BSNL/MTNL, Railways etc.

I know many people will say that these things don't work in India , but this actually works as one of our colleague in CSC found. The guy I'm talking about lives in Faridabad . Couple of months back, the Faridabad Municipal Corporation laid new roads in his area and the residents were very happy about it. But 2 weeks later, BSNL dug up the newly laid roads to install new cables which annoyed all the residents including this guy. But it was only this guy! Who used the above listed grievance forum to highlight his concern. And to his surprise, BSNL and Municipal Corporation of Faridabad were served a show because notice and the guy received a copy of the notice in one week. Government has asked the MC and BSNL about the goof up as it’s clear that both the government departments were not in sync at all.

So use this grievance forum and educate others who don't know about this facility. This way we can at least raise our concerns instead of just talking about the ' System ' in India .

Invite your friends to contribute for many such happenings.

PLEASE SPREAD THIS MESSAGE IF U WANT OUR INDIA TO CHANGE.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

SIF-Cochin Press conference: Saturday 10th May-pls forward to all concerned

A press conference announcing the formation of a State wide action group in Kerala, under the aegis of Save Indian Family(SIF), for fighting against Misuse of gender biased laws is being conducted on 10th May.

******************************************
Venue: 'Kings Court', Rama Varma Club, Behind Jos Junction, Opp. TDM Hall(Darbar), Cochin

Time: 4 P.M, Saturday, 10th May 2008

Contact: P.R.Gokul: 9895697372, Jimmy Isac: 9995308518, Sumesh(SIF Helpline): 9895557765
********************************************

Please forward this mail to all your media contacts and friends in Kerala.

Friends in Kerala are requested to ensure their presence for the event.

Warm Regards,

Gokul, http://gokul.go.to, 9821414336(Mumbai)
Editor - www.siftimes.com , Director- www.pifngo.info
Protect Indian Family: "For Family Harmony.. Against Legal Terrorism"
In Kerala till 14th May: 9895697372

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Laison with Industry against Legal Terrorism+Education the healer

Posted by: gokul_p_r , Sun May 4, 2008 9:20 pm (PDT)

Suresh, Samuel and all,

Suresh impressed as ever seeing your action oriented plans(not leg-less ideas, knowing you :), I am sure u have been tracking this aspect of converting cream of IT/Biz heads into evangelists against legal terrorism, good compilation of news about biz heads who we can target and get to our side.

I am sure Bangalore guys especially IT seniors like Bharathi can start networking on this aspect and get HP, Wipro heads in the loop for lobbying(I guess there is already some action in this direction initiated by Gorky/Bharathi by educating the HR of all IT companies, from what I could read in a couple of the mails in the past). Amitabh can do this for one of the heads mentioned in the list(for now this is sensitive, so not disclosing).
*****************************
Only true equality and true education will bring harmony between the sexes.

True value-based education has to start from the home, from a humanist mother and father(why be a feminist when you can be more than that? :).

Bare degrees and jobs are not signs of education, but a humane mind is. Bare rights at the cost of some else's sufferings is not equality, but nurturing and complimenting each other is.
************************
Samuel, though biologically Men and Women have different capabilities including left brain/right brain capabilities, if you take IT field acumen both men and women should score as equals in terms of overall capability, at the same time complimenting each other's specific capabilities( the difference which u pointed out- Women not up to the mark of men in IT, must be only because women as class were not encouraged in the past(to a certain extent even now) to get educated, by a lot of fathers/mothers.

In our culture this tendency/attitude is still prevalent - the attitude 'Beti toh paraaya ghar ki hein'(a girl child will anyway belong to some other family after marrige) -read with- 'isko padake kya collector banegi/banayegi, shaadi hi toh karni hein!'(by educating girl what will anyone gain(she is not supposed to be collector), after all she has to 'just' get married).

If in the past parents of girls had educated the girls properly, the dependacy of dowry as a securtity deposit for the girls would have had come down(in most of the situations the purpose of giving money to the husbands family was for her protection/expenses for her lifetime- if she could have been self reliant in a suitable job(as explained in the later parts of this post, by the virtue of being 'properly' educated) she would have brought her self the required security/expenses without being dependant of dowry.

In addition to reducing dependancy on dowry as security deposit for a less reliable product(an uneducated married girl), the girls would have brought up as equals(having equal inheritance of ancestral/accrued properties, socially, etc.) and the present day scenario of radical feminism would have been exposed by women themselves right in the beginning.

Its because women are uneducated and oppressed, by and large, that this radical feminists has the scope to corrupt their minds. Educated women brought up by educated mothers (and fathers) would spot the danger and opportunism of these feminazies in a blink of their eyes.

Its not late, we should educate our daughters in a proper way so that they know when a family breaking thought is being injected into them by these radical feminists who are themselves single/divorced/ social outcasts.

This virtue of education(proper, not just degrees, but value inculcating education) in women is evident in some parts of India(again in some selected families, since value for education was not recognised widely in the past due to various historical reasons like oppression of masses/colonisation and hence general deprivation, etc.) where the women were traditionally brought up as equals. In these families they used to balance family responsibilities plus taking care of the home-centric businesses(manufact uring and finance side) while the menfolk used to take care of the Promotion and Marketing side. For example in kerala, there where a number of families in which educated womenfolk used to take care of the coconut and paddy cultivation/ coir manufacturing and labourers while the menfolk go off to far away lands/markets to trade the crop/products.

This was a successful model in which familial responsibilities where taken care in addition to a part of the business by educated women folk, but these models were a rarity and did not become the mainstay of our society, which instead got corrupted by dowry, inequal treatment of women, etc., and hence facilitating the emergence of laws like IPC 498a, DV, and other biased laws, formed under the lobbying pressure of radical feminists.

Education in the right sense is the solution for healing the world. Lets not forget this when our turn comes, lets not treat our children with gender bias, lets start a fire.

regards
Gokul

PS: I don't believe in unmindful women-bashing, because I have seen successful women right in front of my eyes, who have done more than what I have described above- they were all brought up as equals and were given proper value-based education. As the saying gies "If a women is educated a whole generation will be educated(her kids and their kids)"

--- In saveindianfamily@ yahoogroups. com, "sureshram56" wrote:>>

WE can present a program on Impact Legal Terrorism and itsManifestation on IT IndustryStarting withAzim premji of WiproBreaking News : Azim premji ini another DV case<http://genderindian.sulekha.com/blog/post/2007/12/breaking-news-azim-premji-ini-another-dv-case.htm>Sunil Mittal of HPProsecution of former HP India chief to proceed, rules SC<http://www.livemint.com/2008/02/21234306/Prosecution-of-former-HP-India.html>Vikram Uttam Singh, of KPMG,Does KPMG paid the price for recruiting a 498A Legal terrorist<http://www.ibnlive.com/news/sexual-harassment-at-work-sacked-employee-gets-justice/50246-3.html>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/saveindianfamily/message/60457Ajay Agarwal,of Pune<http://www.ibnlive.com/news/punes-top-builder-on-police-radar-wife-alleges-harassment/60706-3.html>http://www.ibnlive.com/news/punes-top-builder-on-police-radar-wife-alleges-harassment/60706-3.html"We conduct regular yoga ad meditation workshops at the Hyderabadoffices of IT companies such as IBht Micn3soft, Infosys and Wipro"SeverallT companies are now organising social events ...Infosys, for one, organises events where both employees and theirfamilies ""Oracle "We have several health and social initiatives that help our24,000". We celebrate Family Days
--- In saveindianfamily@ yahoogroups. com, "samesh" > wrote:> >> >

THE POINT THAT THIS FAILS TO NOTE IS ONE MORE REASON THAT ADDS TO THEROOT CAUSE. THE POPULATION THAT I.T. PROFESSIONALS FORM OFF IS APREDOMINANTLY HIGHLY TECHNICALLY INCLINED MALE POPULATION.THAT IS NOTSOMETHING THAT CAME ABOUT COS FEMALES WERE NEGLECTED OR ABUSED OR HAVELESS OPPORTUNITY ( FEMALE EDU IN INDIA IS F-R-E-E TILL 21 YRS OF AGE +FEMALES PAY LESS TAX + A LOT MORE SCHEMES FOR FEMALES ) BUT FOR THESIMPLE REASON THAT THEY DONT HAVE THE APTITUDE/INTELLECT TO BE SOVERSATILE AND TECH INLINCED ( THIS IS A STEREOTYPE THAT IS LARGELYTRUE BUT THERE CAN BE STRONG STRAY EXCEPTIONS ) AS IS NEEDED BY I.T.INDUSTRY.MOST OF THESE JOBS FROM THE BEST ( H1 OR OUTSOURCED ) COME TODESI IN INDIA COS OF<> HI TECH VERSATILTY NEEDED FOR THESE SKILLED GROUP.MOST INDIAN I.T.FELLOWS ARE EXPECTED TO HAVE A COMBINATION OF 5 TIMES MORE SKILL SETSTHAN THE AVG. FELLOW ( AT LEAST IN MY CASE ) IN THE WEST AT LESS THAN1/5 THE RATE AS IS PAID IN THE WEST.<> COMMUNICATIONS SKILLS IN ENG ARE GOOD.SO THE INCONGRUENT GLOBAL DEMAND FOR I.T HAS RESULTED IN AN NATURALLYINCONGRUENT POPULATION , THAT IS PREDOMINATELY MALE, GOING ABROAD.THIS HAS CAUSED J-E-A-L-O-U-S-L-Y IN THE FEMALE SIDE , WHO THINK THATTHEY CAN ONLY GET A FARE SHARE BY BEING A PARASITE ON THE MALES.I AMNOT BEING BIASED JUST TAKE AN E.G. of Nurses ( the policy is totallyanti immigration cos an RNP is a coveted profession in USA sought byboth males and females ) , Air hostresses ( most Western Women look ,dress and Behave 10000x better than the UGLY desi counter parts e.g.compare the Smart Delta/ Lufthansa airhostress to an Air India Aunty) , Film Actresses / Escorts ( you would all AGREE with me when u seeboth Aish Rai and Bo Derek wearing underclothes that BO DEREK ORPAMELA ANDERSON LOOKS 100000000000000000000 TIMES BETTER THAN THATCHEAP DESI MAL OF AISH RAI AND LIKES ). IN OTHER WORDS THE ONLYPROFESSION THAT TAKES YOU ABROAD TODAY IS MALE DOMINATED ( NOT BYSITUATION BUT BY DESIGN ) .WHEREAS THIS GROUP OF TECH SUPERIOR PEOPLE IS GOOD AT TECH WORK THEYARE BAD IN POLITICS & RIGHT NOW IT LOOKS LIKE THEY ARE ALL GOATSLINED UP TO GET SLAUGHTERED BY THE HALAL FEMALES. THE ONLY THING THATCAN CHANGE THIS IS THE FORMING OF STRONG MALE UNIONS , ACTIVE INGENDER POLITICS , IN I.T. COMPANIES, THAT LOBBY AGAINST GENDER BIASEDLAWS AND THREATEN STRIKE AGAINST CONG GOVT IF DEMANDS ARE NOT MET.....BUT WHO THE BLOODY HELL CARES..........CHALTA HAI ....CHAL NE DO.
--- In saveindianfamily@ yahoogroups. com, "weaknessasin" > > wrote:> > >> > >

ITh gettingThe flipside of India's IT boom: depression, divorces, SUICIDES...Manoj SharmaHindustan Times, 04-05-08, Epaper.NITIN KUMAR, 28, is a software professional with a top-notchinformation technology company in Bangalore. A fat salary, a fancyapartment and a big carhe seems to have everything going for him.But scratch the surface and you realise that the boy from Jamshedpurhas paid a hefty price for success in India's Silicon Valley. Forthe last two years, he has been putting in an average of 13 hours ofwork a day. Sometimes there's work to be done after-hours too: inthe form of conference calls in the middle of the night with clientsin the US. The stress of such a 10 had a telling effect on hismarriage within a few months of tying the knot in 2006. His w@, acommercial artist, began to suspect him of having an extramaritalaffair Four months back, when he returned from work, he found thathis w@ had left for her parents' home in Lucknow. She has now filedfor divorce. A distraught Nitin has developed suicidal tendencies.Dhananjay Kumar 27, is a software analyst at a reputed IT company inGurgaon. Married for two years to a PR professional, his longworking hours have resulted in migraines and dizzy spells. He todaysuffers from a lack of sexual desire and that has resulted ingrowing marital discord.NITIN AND Dhananjay are not isolated cases in the Indian IT industryTheir predicament represents the flipside of the IT revolution deadin their house in Vijayawada. The next month, Bangalore techie AmitBhuddiraja strangled his wife to death, suspecting her of having anaffair Later that month, Hyderabad software engineer E Rama Krishna,31, was found dead with his wife Soumya, 23, in their home. Krishnaleft a suicide note saying that he resorted to the extreme stepbecause of his wife's suspicious behaviour The couple had beenmarried for a year SK Chaturvedi, professor of psychiatry at theNational Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS),says, "There has been a five-fold rise in the number of ITprofessionals visiting us for many stress-related problems in thepast couple of years. In fact, this prompted us to con duct a studyamong IT professionals, which ibund that 36 per cent of theprofessionals we studied are probable psychiatric cases." The studythat Chaturvedi led last December also throws up a number ofdisconcerting trends about stress in the IT and IT-enabled services(ITES) industry. (See box below for the findings.) Pressurepoints "People from the IT sector often display symptoms such asrestlessness, lack of concentration, anxiety, body pain, lack ofsleep, headache, panic, nervousness, and complain of not enjoyingdaily activities," says Chaturvedi.Another psychiatrist with a private practice in Bangalore says that70 per cent of his clients happen to be from the IT industry Theproblems do not only hound techies in Bangalore, the spread of thephenomenon is wider Dr Deepak Raheja, clinical psychiatrist at ParasHospital in Gurgaon, says, "Forty per cent of my patients are ITprofessionals. The problem is that they are given unreasonabletargets and deadlines, and they just cannot cope." For themselves,IT professionals complain that it's the complex problem solving,mismanaged or under-evaluated software projects, and pressure ofdeadlines that make their jobs so stressful. "There is fiercecompetition and nothing is repetitive. One has to innovate andstretch oneself everyday," says Sandeep Gupta, a softwareprofessional working in Noida. Another IT professional fromBangalore, who requested anonymity, says, "We take a lot of workhome.Most of us forget to press 'pause' when it comes to work. Peerpressure and the pressure of paying large instalments on cars andhome loans are also making things difficult for many of us." Splitwide open Aruna Broota, a Delhi-based psychologist, says, "Many ITprofessionals I counsel are so hooked to the computer that they haveno social skills and have no family concerns. I have had many caseswhere wives of IT professionals told me they have married a wall - aperson without any interest in love, romance and sex, which isresulting in increasing marital discord." The NIHMANS study showedthat married IT professionals were more stressed than unmarriedones. Rahul Kashyap, a Chandigarh-based software professional,says, "It's not just my wife who's often angry with me, even myeight-year-old son has not been talking to me for a month. For thepast three years, I have not been able to attend his birthday as Ihave been out on projects."Sexologists say that long hours in the night in front of computersmake IT professionals physically weak and, eventually, they developsexual and reproductive problems. Dr D. Narayana Reddy, a well-knownChennai-based sexologist, says, "There is rising incidence ofimpotence, hormone disorder and infertility among IT professionals.I have had several cases where young professionals have not had sexfor two years. There are also cases where marriages have not beenconsummated for two years. The online chat rooms have become theirbedrooms. The worst part is that they do not have the time andpatience to set- t1e issues with their spouses.A Chennat-based lawyer reports. "In the last one year, I havehanelled about a dexen cases involving IT professionals wheredivorce s been sought on the ground of impotence." Private detectiveagencies report a steep rise in the number of IT professionals wivesapproaching them for spying on their husbands. Pradeep Sharma, ownerof the Delhibased Times Detectives, says, "Forty per cent of myclients are IT professionals or their wives who want to spy on theirspouses, because they suspect them of having extramarital affairs.They are so suspicious that no matter what our findings are, most ofthem end up divorcing." Divorces filed in Bangalore offer anotherworrisome view. From 1,240 in 2004, the number shot up to 1,860 and2,493 in 2005 and 2006, respectively Ujwala A. Mandgi, co-owner ofone of the oldest law firms in Bangalore, reck- ons more than halfof them are from the IT sector She says. "This year. the number ofHNorce cases in Bangalore has already crossed 1,200 in just tourmonths. Chennai, too, offers a bleak view Lalvvors from the city sayabout -10 per cent of the divorces filed in the city involve IT orITES professionals and there are more cases being filed by women.Geeta Ramaseshan, a Chennai-based activist-1awyer, says, "Most ITprofessionals belong to the 'Entitlement Generation', which believesin the right to many things including the making and breakingmarriages.Since IT professionals are financially independent, they do notthink twice before partying ways." Arun Bharadwaj, a lawyer at theDelhi High Court, feels that one of the significant reasons formarital discord in the industry is that while some do not want tohave children at all, others postpone starting a family for the sakeof their careers. "I know many IT guys who are so caught up in therat race that they are more concerned about pleasing their bossesthan their spouses," says Bharadwaj. Healing touch Many IT companieshave realised the enormity of the problem. While many have help-lines and inhouse psychiatrists, other hold regular yoga andmeditation classes for the mental and physical wellbeing of theiremployees. S. Ram Mohan Rao, head of the Sahaja Yoga Society inAndhra Pradesh, claims, "We conduct regular yoga and meditationworkshops at the Hyderabad offices of IT companies such as IBhtMicn3soft, Infosys and Wipro. Besides, about 200 IT professionalsare regulars at our various centres in Hyderabad."SeverallT companies are now organising social events regularly andtrying to cut down on office hours. Infosys, for one, organisesevents where both employees and their families participate. It hostsan annual day for the 'Petit Infoscion', in which the children ofemployees explore their parents' workplace. IT services may haveborne the brunt of such excesses of working lives till now But, asthe NIMHANS report underlines, it's a social phenomenon that needsto be tackled across India and across sectors on an emergency basis.http://groups.yahoo.com/group/saveindianfamily/post?postID=AmFgeXlelQW3HOkUyrfAfUAxoiT5cvauMGitmuPaTn67D0hW5FmnNIc46587-fldiJY1TkTs2cuFqOLFUdD4iJ-qdy7nJ774wgMINDING WELLNESS PRITHVI SHERGILL, HR head, Accenture India "Thehealth of our 37,000 employees matters a lot. We have round-the-clock clinics called 'Wellness Centres'. We have regular awarenesscamps where doctors and specialists talk on various health topics.We also provide flexible work options to help employees betterbalance their lives. We offer our employees a productive workenvironment. We host gettogethers not only for our employees, butfor their families too. We celebrate Family Days. Besides, we haveCommunities, a yearlong initiative that aims to bring employees withsimilar interests together. There, each employee can participate ina range of activities."ERGONOMIC FITFORALL ALLEN MATHEW, Senior HR director, Oracle "Wehave several health and social initiatives that help our 24,000employees in India and their families. We have ongoing activities tomake our employees aware of and prevent ergonomicsrelated disorderssuch as repetitive stress injuries. Also, our india offices' designand furniture follow global ergonomic standards. We have a freeEmployee Assistance Program providing our employees' family membersaccess to professional counselors. We also have employee clubs thatconduct yoga and meditation workshops. We have options such as flexi-time, workfrom-home and part-time work to give our employees achoice."

Thursday, May 01, 2008

SC citation for 'Legal Terrorism'- Writ Petition (civil) 141 of 2005

CASE NO.:Writ Petition (civil) 141 of 2005 - Citation: JT 2005 (6) SC 266
PETITIONER:Sushil Kumar Sharma
RESPONDENT:Union of India and Ors.
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 19/07/2005
BENCH:Arijit Pasayat & H.K. Sema
JUDGMENT:JUDGMENT
Arijit Pasayat, J.
By this petition purported to have been filed under Article 32 of theConstitution of India, 1950 (in short `the Constitution') prayer is todeclare Section 498A of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short `the IPC') to beunconstitutional and ultra vires in the alternative to formulate guidelinesso that innocent persons are victimized by unscrupulous persons makingfalse accusations.
Further prayer is made that whenever, any court comes to the conclusionthat the allegations made regarding commission of offence under Section 498IPC are unfounded, stringent action should be taken against person makingthe allegations. This according to the petitioner, would discourage personsfrom coming to courts with unclean hands and ulterior motives. Severalinstances have been highlighted to show as to how commission of offencepunishable under Section 498A IPC has been made with oblige motive and witha view to harass the husband, in-laws and relatives.
According to the petitioner there is no prosecution in these cases but persecution. Reliance was also placed on a decision rendered by a learned Single Judge of the Delhi High Court wherein concern was shown about the increase in number of false and frivolous allegations made. It was pointedout that accusers are more at fault than the accused. Persons try to takeundue advantage of the sympathies exhibited by the courts in mattersrelating to alleged dowry torture.
Section 498A appears in Chapter XXA of IPC.
Substantive Sections 498A IPC and presumptive Section 113-B of the IndianEvidence Act. 1872 (in short `Evidence Act') have been inserted in therespective statutes by Criminal Law (Second Amendment) Act, 1983.
Section 498A IPC and Section 113-B of the Evidence Act include in theiramplitude past events of cruelty. Period of operation of Section 113-B ofthe Evidence Act is seven years, presumption arises when a woman committedsuicide within a period of seven years from the date of marriage.
Section 498 reads as follows:
"498A: Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty-Whoever being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman,subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for aterm which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation-For the purpose of this section `cruelty' means-
(a) any wilful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive thewoman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb orhealth (whether mental or physical) of the woman; or
(b) harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view tocoercing her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand forany property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or anyperson related to her to meet such demand."
Section 113-B reads as follows:-
"113-B: Presumption as to dowry death-When the question is whether a personhas committed the dowry death of a woman and it is shown that soon beforeher death such woman has been subjected by such person to cruelty orharassment for, or in connection with, any demand for dowry, the Courtshall presume that such person had caused the dowry death.
Explanation-For the purpose of this section `dowry death' shall have thesame meaning as in Section have the same meaning as in Section 304-B of theIndian Penal Code (45 of 1860)."
Consequences of cruelty which are likely to drive a woman to commit suicideor to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health, whether mentalor physical of the woman is required to be established in order to bringhome the application of Section 498A IPC. Cruelty has been defined in theexplanation for the purpose of Section 498A. It is to be noted thatSections 304-B and 498A, IPC cannot be held to be mutually inclusive. Theseprovisions deal with two distinct offences. It is true that cruelty is acommon essential to both the Sections and that has to be proved. Theexplanation to Section 498A gives the meaning of `cruelty'. In Section 304-B there is no such explanation about the meaning of `cruelty'. But havingregard to common background to these offences it has to be taken that themeaning of `cruelty' or `harassment' is the same as prescribed in theExplanation to Section 498A under which `cruelty' by itself amounts to anoffence.
The object for which Section 498A IPC was introduced is amply reflected inthe Statement of Objects and Reasons while enacting Criminal Law (SecondAmendment) Act No. 46 of 1983. As clearly stated therein the increase innumber of dowry deaths is a matter of serious concern. The extent of theevil has been commented upon by the Joint Committee of the Houses toexamines the work of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. In some cases,cruelty of the husband and the relatives of the husband which culminate insuicide by or murder of the helpless woman concerned, which constitute onlya small fraction involving such cruelty. Therefore, it was proposed toamend IPC, the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (in short `the Cr.P.C.')and the Evidence Act suitably to deal effectively not only with cases ofdowry deaths but also cases of cruelty to married women by the husband, inlaws and relatives. The avowed object is to combat the menance of dowrydeath and cruelty.
One other provision which is relevant to be noted is Section 306 IPC. Thebasic difference between the two Section i.e. Section 306 and Section 498Ais that of intention. Under the latter. cruelty committed by the husband orhis relations drag the women concerned to commit suicide, while under theformer provision suicide is abetted and intended.
It is well settled that mere possibility of abuse of a provisions of lawdoes not per se invalidate a legislation. It must be presumed, unlesscontrary is proved, that administrative and application of a particular lawwould be done "not with an evil eye and unequal hand" (see A Thangal KunjuMusaliar v. M. Venkatachalam Potti, Authorised Official and Income-Taxofficer and Anr., AIR (1956) SC 246.
In Budhan Choudhry and Ors. v. State of Bihar, AIR (1955) SC 191 acontention was raised that a provision of law may not be discriminatory butit may land itself to abuse bringing about discrimination between thepersons similarly situated. This court repelled the contention holding thaton the possibility of abuse of a provision by the authority, thelegislation may not be held arbitrary or discriminatory and violative ofArticle 14 of the Constitution.
From the decided cases in India as well as in United States of America, theprinciple appears to be well settled that if a statutory provision isotherwise intra-vires, constitutional and valid, mere possibility of abuseof power in a given case would not make it objectionable, ultra-vires orunconstitutional. In such cases, "action" and not the "section" may bevulnerable. If it is so, the court by upholding the provision of law, maystill set aside the action; order or decision and grant appropriate reliefof the person aggrieved.
In Mafatlal Industries Ltd. and Ors. v. Union of India and Ors., [1997] 5SCC 536, a Bench of 9 Judges observed that mere possibility of abuse of aprovision by those in charge of administering it cannot be a ground forholding a provision procedurally or substantively unreasonable. InCollector of Customs v. Nathella Sampathu Chetty, [1962] 3 SCR 786 thisCourt observed:
"The possibility of abuse of a statute otherwise valid does not impart toit any element of invalidity." It was said in State of Rajasthan v. Unionof India, [1977] 3 SCC 592 "it must be remembered that merely because powermay sometimes be abused, it is no ground for denying the existence ofpower. The wisdom of man has not yet been able to conceive of a Governmentwith power sufficient to answer all its legitimate needs and at the sametime incapable of mischief." (Also see: Commissioner, H.R.E. v. SriLakshmindra Thirtha Swamiar of Sri Shirur Meth, [1954] 1005.
As observed in Maulavi Hussein Haji Abraham Umarji v. State of Gujarat,[2004] 6 SCC 672, Unique Butle Tube Industries (P) Ltd. v. U.P. FinancialCorporation and Ors., [2003] 2 SCC 455 and Padma Sundara Rago (dead) andOrs. v. State, [2002] 3 SCC 533. while interpreting a provision, the Courtonly interprets the law and cannot legislate it. If a provision of Law ismisused and subjected to the abuse of the process of law, it is for thelegislature to amend, modify or repeal it, if deemed necessary.
The judgment of the Delhi High Court on which reliance was made wasrendered in the case of Savitri Devi v. Ramesh Chand and Ors. In that casewhile holding that the allegations regarding commission of offencepunishable under Section 498A IPC were not made out. Certain observationsin general terms were made about the need for legislative changes. Thecomplaint had moved this Court against the judgment on merits in SLP(Crl).....of 2003 entitled Savitri Devi v. Ramesh Chand and Ors. By orderdated 28.11.2003 this Court observed as follows:
"Heard learned counsel for the petitioner.
Delay condoned.
We do not see any merit in the challenge made to the order of the High Court in Criminal Revision No. 462 of 2002 on the facts of the case. the special leave petition is, therefore, dismissed.
At the same time, we express our disapproval of some of the generalized views expressed in paragraphs 23 to 32 of the judgment of the High Court by the learned Single Judge. The learned Judge ought to have seen that such observations, though may be appropriate for seminars or workshops, should have been avoided being incorporated as part of a court judgment. Some of the views also touch upon Legislative measures and wisdom of legislative policy in substance, which according to the learned Judge need to be taken into account. There was no scope for considering all such matters in the case which was before the learned Judge. It is therefore, appropriate that such generalized observations or views should meticulously avoided by Courts in the judgments."
Above being the position we find no substance in the plea that Section 498Ahas no legal or constitutional foundation.
The object of the provision is prevention of the dowry meance. But as has been rightly contended by the petitioner many instances have come to light where the complaints are not bonafide and have filed with obligue motive.In such cases acquittal of the accused does not in all cases wipe out the ignomy suffered during and prior to trial. Sometimes adverse media coverageadds to the misery. The question, therefore, is what remedial measures can be taken to prevent abuse of the well-intentioned provision. Merely because the provision is constitutional and intra vires, does not give a licence tounscrupulous persons to wreck personal vendetta or unleash harassment. It may, therefore, become necessary for the legislature to find out ways howthe makers of frivolous complaints or allegations can be appropriately dealt with. Till then the Courts have to take care of the situation withinthe existing frame work. As noted the object is to strike at the roots of dowry menace. But by misuse of the provision a new legal terrorism can beunleashed. The provision is intended to be used a shield and not assassins'weapon. If cry of "wolf" is made too often as a prank assistance andprotection may not be available when the actual "wolf" appears. There is noquestion of investigating agency and Courts casually dealing with theallegations. They cannot follow any strait jacket formula in the matters relating to dowry tortures, deaths and cruelty. It cannot be lost sight ofthat ultimate objective of every legal system is to arrive at truth, punishthe guilty and protect the innocent. There is no scope for any pre-conceived notion or view. It is strenuously argued by the petitioner thatthe investigating agencies and the courts start with the presumption thatthe accused persons are guilty and that the complainant is speaking thetruth. This is too wide available and generalized statement. Certainstatutory presumption are drawn which again are reputable. It is to benoted that the role of the investigating agencies and the courts is that of watch dog and not of a bloodhound. It should be their effort to see that innocent person is not made to suffer on account of unfounded, baseless and malicious allegations. It is equally indisputable that in many cases nodirect evidence is available and the courts have to act on circumstantialevidence. While dealing with such cases, the law laid down relating tocircumstantial evidence has to be kept in view.
Prayer has been made to direct investigation by the Central Bureau ofInvestigation (in short the `CBI') in certain matters where the petitioneris arrayed as an accused. We do not find any substance in this plea. If thepetitioner wants to prove his innocence, he can do so in the trial, if held.
The Writ Petition is accordingly disposed of.

**********

This citation is also included in this post: http://at498a.blogspot.com/2006/07/please-report-on-misuse-of-ipc-section.html