Criminal Legislative Framework Governing Dowry Death Offence In India
Dr. Geetika Sood, Assistant Professor, Department of Laws, H.P. University, Shimla
Aditi Sharma, Research Scholar, Department of Laws, H.P. University, Shimla
ABSTRACT
Dowry related violence remains a significant problem in India's efforts to protect women and effectively administer criminal justice. The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 made women's dowry gift, receipt and demand a criminal offence, but so many cases of dowry-related harassment and violence in marriage have been seen throughout the country. This scenario highlighted the importance of more effective and robust laws to tackle dowry offences. The enactment of Section 304-B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the attendant evidentiary presumption in Section 113-B of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, was a significant improvement in the legal framework in relation to dowry deaths. These provisions were designed to address the challenges encountered by the families of the deceased women in establishing the "domestic relations" of the deceased women in their case of unnatural deaths. India's criminal justice system has been completely rearranged with the passing of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA), and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS). The present paper deals with the law in India pertaining to dowry death using a doctrinal approach. It examines the constitutional scope of protection of women from matrimonial violence and examines the legal validity and functioning of offences of matrimonial violence such as dowry death and abetment of suicide. The paper also looks at the presumptions built on the BSA and investigative and procedural safeguards that exist under the BNSS. The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 is regarded as an effective preventive measure to supplement the criminal law system. The study also examines important judicial rulings that have helped define the concept of dowry death, its key ingredients, the need to establish a link between dowry-related harassment and death and the interpretation of the presumptions in the legislation. The overall aim of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the current legal situation in being able to respond to dowry-related violence and the impact the transition to the new criminal laws has had on women's protection in matrimonial contexts.
Keywords: Dowry Death, BNS, Dowry Prohibition Act, Domestic Violence, Women's Rights, Criminal Law.
