This article has been written by Vikash Singh, 4th year Student of B.A.LL.B of the IIMT College of Law, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
PREFACE:
In India, Women face domestic violence in their matrimonial/shareholder homes by their house partner and his family members for their illegal Demands like dowry. Women suffering from domestic violence is the harsh reality of Society and it is the reason for the anguish/sorrow that time women face domestic violence in an independent nation where the constitution gives them equal fundamental rights. The National Family Health Survey report talks about the women’s condition in their matrimonial house. Most woman faces domestic violence as Physical, emotional, sexual, and financial in their matrimonial house by the respondent. Indian Penal Code 1860 and Criminal Procedure of Code have a provision for the protection of women but these acts are not very sufficient so the parliament passed a new code which named is the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence 2005. This Act deals with major problems that are not defined in earlier acts this act contains 5 chapters and 37 sections and this act defines the many terms that are used in this Act.
FEATURES OF THIS ACT:
- This act contains 5 chapters and 37 sections and these are the names of the chapter as follows:
Chapter I: Preliminary (Sec 1- Sec 2),
Chapter II: Domestic Violence (Sec 3),
Chapter III: Power and Duties of Protection Officers, Service Providers, Etc. (Sec 4- Sec 11),
Chapter IV: Procedure For Obtaining Orders of Reliefs (Sec 12 – Sec 28),
Chapter V: Miscellaneous provision (Sec 29-Sec37).
- This act provides an absolute description of domestic violence, recognizing various kinds of abuse that occur within a domestic relationship. This act contains physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, and economic abuse, as well as importunity/harassment.
- This act is for all women, anyhow of their marital status, including wives, daughters, mothers, sisters, and even live-in partners who are subordinated to domestic violence.
- This act provides power to an aggrieved person to seek protection orders from the Court to help her from replier/respondent to committing further acts of violence. These orders safeguard of aggrieved person from the abuser to reaching/contacting or approaching the victim, her children, or other relatives.
- The court can grant a woman the right to live in her shared household, irrespective of her ownership or financial contribution. This provision aims to help the eviction of women from their marital homes by vituperative consorts or in-laws.
- This act provides the power to women to claim monetary relief from the abuser to cover medical charges, loss of earnings, and any other losses suffered due to domestic violence.
- The act emphasizes the establishment of support services like counselling, medical installations, shelter homes, and legal aid to help women affected by domestic violence.
- The act allows for the allocation of emergency protection orders in cases of imminent danger, providing swift relief to women facing immediate pitfalls of violence.
- Violation of protection orders can affect in criminal action against the offender, thereby enforcing compliance with the court’s directives.
- The act ensures the confidentiality of proceedings and the privacy of the victim to cover her from further harm and social stigma.
- The act allows for the permission of interim orders to provide immediate relief to victims before the final disposal of the case.
OBJECTIVE OF THE PROTECTION OF WOMEN FROM DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT:
This Act was legislated/enacted by the Indian Parliament on September 13, 2005, and extends to the total of India. The main ideal of making this Act is “to give for more absolute protection of the rights of aggrieved person guaranteed under the constitution who are victims of violence of any kind being within the matrimonial home and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.” Some other objects of the Act include as following ,
- To help domestic violence by creating mindfulness about the issue and promoting a societal shift towards non-violence.
- To insure that those who commit acts of violence are brought to justice and face applicable legal consequences.
- To establish a comprehensive legal frame to address domestic violence that provides survivors of domestic violence with legal remedies, protection orders, and access to support services.
- To give medical backing, counselling, shelter, and rehabilitation facilities to help survivors rebuild their lives and recapture their independence.
- To recognise and determine that every act of domestic violence is unlawful/forbidden by law and punishable by law.
- To give protection to victims of domestic violence in the cases such acts do.
- To serve justice in a timely, cost-effective, and accessible manner to the aggrieved person.
- To help the commission of domestic violence and to take acceptable steps if such violence occurs.
- To apply sufficient programmes and dockets/agendas for the victims of domestic violence and to ensure the recovery of such victims.
- To produce mindfulness among the people about domestic violence.
- To apply harsh punishment and must hold the lawbreakers accountable for committing such heinous acts of violence.
- To lay down the law and govern it in agreement with the international norms for the forestalment of domestic violence.
CRITICISM OF THIS ACT:
Some people have criticised the law on the base of it being only civil, rather of both civil and criminal as it was meant to be. The criminal part of the law only gets touched off when the act of domestic violence is accompanied by some other offence, like not following the protection order given by the court.
- As per the Act, the authority responsible for effective perpetration of the Act is a Protection Officer, who is linked by the State Government. Such an officer is assigned the major part of aiding the court, initiating action on behalf of the displeased and looking after the services needed by the victim like medical help, counselling, legal aid, etc. Still, the people appointed under the Act are people who are in practice not working full time. Utmost of the time, in fact, this duty is given as an fresh charge to those who are formerly in Government services. These people are substantially not qualified to fit into this part.
- Numerous people have said that this law assumes men to be the sole perpetrators of domestic violence. Therefore, by allowing only women to file a complaint about domestic violence, this law violates Article 14 abd Article 15 of the Indian Constitution and discriminates against men.
- Some people have also said that the description of Domestic violence is too wide and allows cunning women to beget trouble to men for no reason whatsoever.
IMPORTANT CASE OF RELATION DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT\
- Bharti ben BipinbhaiTamboli v. State of Gujrat and Ors, 2018.
- S.R. Batra & Another Vs. Smt. Taruna Batra,AIR2007 SC 1118,.
- Arvind Singh v. State of Bihar
- Chanmuniya v. Virendra Kumar Singh Kushwaha
- V.D. Bhanot v. Savita Bhanot
- Indra Sarma v. V.K.V Sarma
- Hiral p. Harsora and Ors. V. Kusum Narottamdas Harsora and Ors.
- Satish Chander Ahuja v. Sneha Ahuja
CONCLUSION
Lacunae of the Domestic Violence Act
1. While the Act does protect women from domestic violence, it has been misused by
certain women to hurt the respondents and there are no provisions for punishment for
this under the Act.
2. The act does not allow the prosecution of women against women, and instead, one must
prosecute under S. 498A of IPC.
3. There are no specific provisions for LGBTQ relationships, even though the same sex
relationships and live-in relationships have been recognized by the Supreme Court.
4. Verbal abuse and mental harassment are subjective terms and are difficult to prove in a
court of law
Lacunae of the Domestic Violence Act
1. While the Act does protect women from domestic violence, it has been misused by
certain women to hurt the respondents and there are no provisions for punishment for
this under the Act.
2. The act does not allow the prosecution of women against women, and instead, one must
prosecute under S. 498A of IPC.
3. There are no specific provisions for LGBTQ relationships, even though the same sex
relationships and live-in relationships have been recognized by the Supreme Court.
4. Verbal abuse and mental harassment are subjective terms and are difficult to prove in a
court of law
Lacunae of the Domestic Violence Act
1. While the Act does protect women from domestic violence, it has been misused by
certain women to hurt the respondents and there are no provisions for punishment for
this under the Act.
2. The act does not allow the prosecution of women against women, and instead, one must
prosecute under S. 498A of IPC.
3. There are no specific provisions for LGBTQ relationships, even though the same sex
relationships and live-in relationships have been recognized by the Supreme Court.
4. Verbal abuse and mental harassment are subjective terms and are difficult to prove in a
court of law
Lacunae of the Domestic Violence Act
1. While the Act does protect women from domestic violence, it has been misused by
certain women to hurt the respondents and there are no provisions for punishment for
this under the Act.
2. The act does not allow the prosecution of women against women, and instead, one must
prosecute under S. 498A of IPC.
3. There are no specific provisions for LGBTQ relationships, even though the same sex
relationships and live-in relationships have been recognized by the Supreme Court.
4. Verbal abuse and mental harassment are subjective terms and are difficult to prove in a
court of law
Although the major ideal/objective of this law, being to cover women against domestic violence has been secured, certain portions of the law remain to be developed. This law provides civil relaxation to the aggrieved person or victims of domestic violence. Before the enactment of this law, to seek any civil remedies such as divorce, guardianship of children, or injunctions in any form or maintenance, a woman only had the option of taking conservation to the civil courts. Thus, the DV Act has brought about the needed and necessary change in the system. Although the Act provides exhaustive remedies to fight the issue of domestic violence certain terms and its interpretation need to develop. The Act falls short of furnishing any relief to the male members in the community who are subordinated to domestic violence, being one of the areas where the law falls short. Still, it also needs to be considered that no crime can be abolished from society fully, it is only with strict reforms and medium that it can be checked..
