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kamaal

>>If you cause "annoyance" or "inconvenience" to someone, you can be fined or jailed up to three years!

This doesn't even begin to describe ridiculous. Ever heard of IPC 498a?

For those who don't what it is- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dowry_law_in_India

The law is such, you might even repent being a born a boy in India.

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  (a) Any willful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive
  the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life,
  limb or health whether mental or physical) of the woman; or

  (b) Harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view to coercing
  her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any
  property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or any
  person related to her meet such demand.[8]

Could you elaborate on your objections to the above? I am not familiar with its use or misuse.

If they apply it as is, I don't have a issue. The law is misused heavily. According to the law you can be incarcerated for at least 60 days, just on a complain. In other words you can be arrested just because a women complains, even if no evidence is found, or they don't even have to ask for evidence. The presumption of guilt prevails. You are presumed to be a offender. This law has been often used for near extortion scenarios. It works like this, since it covers the women of the husbands family. Often younger sister of the husband is arrested or his mother is arrested. He will be called to police station to part away his with his property, and generally the arrests are made on Friday's so that these people can stay in jail over the weekend until a bail application can be filed on Monday.

Women are heavily abusing this law for money. Its like marry a guy, slap a 498a case. Get his family members behind bars(Often happens after bribing the policemen). In India its highly devastating to a persons morale, self respect and social status for him to go to jail or see female members of the family go to jail. Then what follows is a black mail and guy is forced to pay up.

The law has been abused by the police and some women so much. From what I've heard, the judges look at every case like it might be fake. Read the Wikipedia link for details.

Some more links on this.

    http://www.498a.org/
    http://www.indianexpress.com/news/women-are-misusing-dowry-act-rules-court/574907
    http://www.firstpost.com/fwire/law-commission-recommends-dilution-of-anti-dowry-law-188059.html

Given the abuse the supreme court of India itself has recommend dilution of this law.

To be fair, the majority of men are pretty barbaric and do physically abuse women after marriage. They totally deserve a law like that. I have heard so many stories of brides getting physically and emotionally abused by their in-laws and husband that I pretty much consider it a part of our culture.

We are not debating about offenders here. We are debating about the abuse of law used to extort money from innocent people.

Yes and I am putting forward a use of the law to deter offenders who happen to exist in large numbers. Domestic Violence is a serious problem in India and a law like this does help.

From the same Wiki page

    IPC 304B assumes that if an accidental death of a wife  happens within seven years of marriage, it is to be assumed to be murder unless the husband can prove his innocence.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dowry_law_in_India#Criticism

It might also be useful to give some background on how such a law came to be passed.

India is fourth most dangerous place in the world for women. It is only a little better than war-ravaged Afghanistan and Congo.

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/india-is-fourth-most-dang...

Women are/were heavily oppressed in India, especially with regards to marriage. Girls and her parents are/were often forced to give a lot of dowry to get their girls married.

There have been cases of dowry death, where women have been burned alive for not bringing in dowry. Couple by general backwardness and other kind of torture. This draconian law was passed.

Of course their intention was good. But the law has be abused so badly, now even the true victims of dowry are suffering due to it.

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