Namrata Ahuja, B.B.A L.L.B, Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Kirit P. Mehta School of Law, Indore (M.P)
Luv Kumar, B.A L.L.B, School of Law, Christ (Deemed To Be University), Bangalore
ABSTRACT
There is no clear proof of dowry in India’s ancient history. According to historical eyewitnesses, dowry was negligible in ancient India, and daughters held the right of inheritance. Evidence suggests that there were cases of bride pricing later in the twentieth century, which resulted in impoverished men being bachelors. Dowry Practice in India has its origins in the mediaeval period, when a bride was given a gift in cash or in other forms such as lands, jewelry, animals, and so on to retain her independence after marriage. During the Colonial period, Britishers made the practice of dowry mandatory, and marriage became legally sanctioned. Despite the rapid growth of the middle- class society and youth population, steps toward modernization, enormous privileged economic development, a better education system, and so on, there are still certain grey areas where the country is still lacking growth, and one of these issues is the prevalent Dowry System and related Deaths, which continues to rise within the time.
There have been laws made for prohibition of Dowry in today’s society. These laws and regulations have been analyzed in the paper and also the misuse of these laws by women itself have been also critically analyzed. This paper has attempted to scrutinize and evaluate legal provisions that have been adapted and adopted by the Indian Legal System in order to minimize the Dowry Deaths, it also highlighted the loopholes and, as a result, its improvement in the legal system and society.
Keywords: Dowry System, Dowry Death, Provisions for Dowry Death, and Misuse of the provisions.
