Woman 'Sends' Baraat Back Over Dowry Demand, Spearheading Action Against It

A bride in Bangana town of Himachal Pradesh refused to marry a groom when he demanded a dowry. Undeniably dowry is a prevalent practice despite being a crime. But efforts like this can prove to be beneficial to curb the crime of exploiting women.

According to the reports, the bride rejected the groom when he brought his baraat and demanded a car, a hefty amount of money and gold as dowry. The baraat was from Galore.

Woman Rejects Groom For Dowry

This is not the first time that a bride refused to marry a man because he demanded dowry or misbehaved. In 2017, a girl in Patna refused to marry a groom when she got to know that is family was demanding an extra dowry. In 2020, a Patiala woman refused to marry a man a day before marriage because he was demanding a dowry. In addition to this, she got him booked under IPC. Moreover, in Bhopal, a woman refused to join the groom after marriage when her in-laws rejected the dowry offered to them.

These cases prove that women today are not ready to budge from their beliefs or be exploited beyond repair. It shows that women are now aware of their rights and know how to protect them.

In our country, according to a study, 95 per cent of marriages were fixed over dowry. The study focused on rural areas which might make people think that dowry is demanded by uneducated or unruly people. But the fact is, most of the Indian population resides in rural areas only.

Moreover, according to a survey, dowry cases rise with the level of education of the groom. The more educated the groom, the more dowry he demands. An educated groom, because of his education, is in high demand in the marriage market. And hence, women’s families are ready to pay huge amounts to rope them in.

So where are exactly the educated and urban families who don’t demand dowry? Who says education or region determines whether a person demands dowry or not? An educated person might demand more dowry than an uneducated one, but they will do it.

In fact, housewives are the second largest group to die by suicide because of continuous harassment for dowry, gender dynamics and more.

Usually, it is not possible for families to deny dowry because they are always in rush to get their daughters married. For families, daughters are burdens or paraya dhan which they want to get rid of as soon as possible. Even if we don’t look at it in a negative way, the fact that families want their girls to settle before something happens to them remains the same. Son’s marriage is not given so much importance as a woman’s marriage.

Apart from the paraya dhan theory, women are forced to get married early because single women are seen as khuli tijori that can be robbed at any minute. So Indian families have the urge to agree to all the demands of the groom as they are grateful to him for accepting the burden of their daughter.

Even the law isn’t of much help. Because if it was, dowry wouldn’t have continued despite being banned more than a decade ago.

The only way out then is to encourage women to not conform to the dowry demands. Women need to take a stand for themselves and oppose gender-based crimes like dowry.

It might be unfair to put all the onus on women. But it makes sense because women know how they are harassed in the name of dowry; they know its intensity and so they are the best people to oppose the practice. So dear women, refuse, fight or take help of the law; do whatever you can to generate awareness around the crime of dowry.

Views expressed are the author's own.

Suggested Reading: Gift, Tradition And Reputation? Dear Families These Are Just Excuses for Dowry