How a woman can save herself from domestic violence in India?
Domestic Violence Against Women In India
While growing up, we all have heard about the term "Domestic Violence" .So what is domestic violence? In a simple way, it can be defined as an act of physical, sexual, psychological or economical abuse committed by a family member or the intimate partner. And in our country domestic violence against women is more common than the domestic violence against men. In everyday news, we all must have came across the news of domestic violence against women. And the cases of domestic violence against women is rapidly increasing day by day. So Indian Judiciary System has made some strict laws and punishments to save the women from domestic violence. So in this blog, i am gonna discuss about the reasons behind domestic violence against women and how a woman can save herself from domestic violence.
According to a National Family and Health Survey in 2005, total lifetime prevalence of domestic violence was 33.5% and 8.5% for sexual violence among women aged 15–49. A 2014 study in The Lancet reports that although the reported sexual violence rate in India is among the lowest in the world, the large population of India means that the violence affects 27.5 million women over their lifetimes. However, A survey carried out by the Thomson Reuters Foundation ranked India as the most dangerous country in the world for women.
For more stats and data, visit:--
https://ssi.edu.in/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Internship-Report-by-Ms.-Tanisha-Khandelwal.pdf
Major Reasons Behind Domestic Violence Against Women
Here i am going to explain the 3 major reasons behind the domestic violence against women,in my opinion.
Gender Norms
Sometimes society force us to believe that men are powerful and superior than Women. Society made us to believe that men should be dominant on women and women should always be under men and should be like a slave to men. This patriarchal society doesn't believe in gender equality and want authority of men over women. They can't see a women going against men and getting rights and privileges a man enjoy. So there is always a societal pressure on men to be dominant and in control over women. This is known as Gender Norms.
Consumption Of Alcohol
According to some research and studies, alcohol also plays an vital role in the domestic violence.
Since alcohol reduces a persons self control and and reduces their ability to negotiate a conflict non-violently, thus making the person more aggressive and violent .
For more information, visit:-https://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/violence/world_report/factsheets/fs_intimate.pdf?ua=1
Psychological And Social Reasons
Various psychological theories states that personality traits like sudden burst of anger, low self esteem and poor impulse control makes a person very violent which also may lead to domestic violence. Some other theories states that, a behavior of a person is affected by it's surroundings. If a child is a self victim of physical abuse or might have been witnessing physical abuse of someone for a long time, then it is more likely that he also become violent when he becomes adult.
Why do some victims , do not make any complain about domestic violence even if they are fed up with it?
1- In many cases, victims do not make any complain against the domestic violence because they think they might change the behavior of the husband or any other person who is constantly physically abusing her.
2- Many times victims do not get neither emotional nor financial support from neither the family members nor from the society. Instead they are shamed brutally by the society which is the also reason why they chose to stick to that abusive relationship.
For more information:- https://www.hindustantimes.com/health/here-s-why-most-domestic-abuse-victims-don-t-file-complaints/story-X6cuGdB7eMwiLPbvxOAfFP.html
So now the main question arises, till when Women of our country will become the victim of domestic violence?
How a woman can save herself from domestic violence? What action can she take against the abuser?
1- First of all, the victims need to give up the false hope that one day everything will be fine. They should tell all the things to the person whom she can trust.
2- They should realize that no one can help her until they have the will power to help themselves.
So they shouldn't be much dependent on others to protect her from the abuser.
3-They should also realize that they can take action against abuser both legally and emotionally.
Laws For Domestic Violence:-
Dowry Prohibition Act 1961
Dowry Prohibition Act, Indian Law, enacted on May 1, 1961, intended to prevent the giving or receiving of dowry. Under the Dowry Prohibition Act, dowry includes property, goods, or money given by either party to the marriage, by the parents of either party, or by anyone else in connection with the marriage. The Dowry Prohibition Act applies to persons of all religions in India.
For more information, visit:-
IPC SECTION-498A
This law was introduced in the Indian Penal Code under Dowry Prohibition Act,1961 in 1983. This states that if a women is subjected to torture or harassment( physically and emotionally) by her husband and husband's relatives, then they are subjected to 3 years imprisonment and fine.
For more information, visit:-
IPC SECTION-304B
This law was introduced in the Indian Penal Code under Dowry Prohibition Act,1961 in 1986. Under this section, if a women commits suicide due to dowry demands by husband and his family, then his husband and his family will be subjected to 7 years of imprisonment which may be extended to life time.
For more information, visit:-
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005
The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted to protect women from domestic violence. It was brought into force by the Indian government from 26 October 2006.
For more information, visit:-
What steps can be taken by the victim of domestic violence?
1- First of all , the victim should consult any NGO , lawyer or National Women Commissioner and undergo counselling.
2- Victim can also take legal action by registering an FIR against abuser in police station.
Please go through this links, for the entire procedure:-
List of some NGO who can help you fight against the domestic violence you are facing:-
My Opinion
No, woman should feel herself as weak. They have to realize, until they don't raise their voice against the domestic violence, the cases of domestic violence against women will be rapidly increased. They have to realize that, there are so many laws against domestic violence against women. But they should have the will power as well to fight against the patriarchal society, other wise, they will be dominated by this patriarchal society forever. But it should also keep in mind that, no one can misuses these laws for personal satisfaction and revenge.
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