Couples framing parents with dowry
Vinayak
Couples framing parents with dowry
[ Sunday, March 19, 2006 10:20:24 amIANS ]
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NEW DELHI: In a shocking trend, some middle class married women, in
league with their husbands, are foisting false dowry charges on their
in-laws to pressure them to part with their wealth, a Delhi Police
official says.
According to K.C. Dwivedi, deputy commissioner of police of the Crime
Against Women Cell, some married couples hatch a plan to harass and
threaten the husband's parents in order to get a share of the wealth
and also to force the elderly parents to live separately.
"It seems they do not want to stay with their parents but are only
concerned about their share in the wealth," Dwivedi said.
He added that in the past two months, the police had registered around
five such cases where married couples framed false charges against
their parents.
"We found that in each of these cases the couples were not only
well-educated and well-placed but came from upper middle class
backgrounds," he said.
Most of the couples were part of a joint family system and wanted to
live separately as a nuclear unit and also avoid looking after the
parents.
According to Dwivedi, the first such case was registered earlier this
year. The police discovered later that the young couple had framed
their parents.
"We came to know the truth when we took help from local police to find
out more about the family," said Dwivedi.
"We normally seek out local police in all cases, and it was a routine
exercise for us. But the report surprised us."
Counsellors dealing with the case also suggested that the couple was
not speaking the truth, the officer said.
"The cases have not been solved and continue to be pending. We are
trying for reconciliation between family members," he added.
Kiran Walia, chairperson of the Delhi Commission of Women, a government
body, said: "It is shameful and disgraceful that children are using the
anti-dowry law against their own parents."
Walia said the trend was due to rising materialism in society and lack
of respect for the elderly. She said the police should take strict
action against couples attempting to misuse the law.
"It is because of such people that others blame all girls of misusing
the anti-dowry law," she said.
Sachit Dalal of the Save Indian Family Foundation, an NGO, said there
were many cases of the anti-dowry law being misused by people. "These
cases are just some more examples."
According to Dalal, it was easier to put pressure on the elderly
because of their age. He said his Foundation has as members about 650
people who have faced dowry-related harassment.
Delhi Police registers around 8,000 cases of dowry harassment every
year.