Dowry System Essay: A Social Evil in India

The Dowry system in India has been running for a long time. It is the money that is given during marriage to the boy or their family, even property can also be included in dowry. The system of dowry started in ancient times during marriage the money will be given to the groom so that he can take proper care of his bride, it was used to honor both sides of the family. As time changes dowry still remains in society but its significance keeps changing with time. 

Nowadays, the dowry system is becoming like a business for some castes. The Dowry system is becoming a burden for the bride’s family. Many times if demand is not fulfilled for the boy's side then the marriage is abruptly canceled as a result of this failure.  If we see it in our Asian country, then dowry is becoming more important for the groom's side, mainly in countries like India.  To end this heinous social practice, the government has made a law to refrain people from taking dowry under the Act of 1961. 

Whatever money or property given by the bride side they should accept but it never followed. In many places, we come to know that because of not doing so on the groom's side the girls are harmed in such a way that sometimes even it leads to death. Some people even think dowry is like crime, it's illegal and they never ask anything from the bride's family. 

In India, everyone speaks and progresses for women's rights and says ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ but a girl even after achieving everything in her life; where starts taking care of her family but even then she can't escape the shackles of dowry. Sometimes because of dowry which is mostly prevalent among the below poverty line people, they kill their daughters after they are born or before their birth in the mother’s womb itself so that they can escape dowry. Since they know after growing up and educating her, they still need to give dowry in order to get her married. However, one fails to understand that it is not a daughter’s fault for which she is being wrongfully punished but the fault of the society that allows such practices even after so many years of independence. 

The History of Dowry 

The dowry system predates the British period and colonization in India. In those days, dowry was not considered "money" or a "fee" that the Bride's parents had to pay.  One of the fundamental purposes of dowry was it acted as a form of protection for the wife against the ill-treatment by her husband and his family. Dowry also served as a helping hand for the bride and the groom to build a life together after marriage. 

When British authority came into effect, however, women were barred from owning any property. Women were not permitted to purchase any real estate, land, or assets. As a result, males began to possess all of the "Gifts" provided to the Bride by her parents. 

During the British Raj, the dowry system was made mandatory leading to immense pressure on the bride’s family financially. Dowry violence has become a prominent aspect that can be observed till date. The husband or his family use violence as a method to extract money from the bride’s family as a “gift.” This system leads to women being dependent on their husbands or in-laws after their marriage.

What are the Effects of the Dowry System?

1. Gender Stereotyping: Women are frequently viewed as liabilities due to the dowry system. They are frequently subjected to subordination and second-class treatment in terms of education and other amenities. 

2. Affecting a Women's Career: The lack of women in labour, and thus their lack of financial independence, is the greater context for the practice of dowry. The poorer sectors of society send their daughters out to work to help them save money for their dowry.  While most middle and upper-class families send their girls to school, they do not prioritize job opportunities. 

3. Objectifying Women: Today's dowry is more equivalent to a financial investment by the Bride's family to get access to powerful connections and lucrative business possibilities. As a result, women are reduced to commodities. 

4. Crime Against Women: Domestic violence includes the violence and murders related to dowry demands. Physical, mental, economic violence, and harassment as a way of enforcing compliance or punishing the victim are all utilized in dowry-related offenses, similar to domestic violence.

How to tackle the Social Evil of Dowry?

The dowry system is a social taboo that must be abolished. Every girl should be proud to visit her in-laws. In India, the dowry system affects 5 out of 10 families. Although the government has enacted numerous regulations, the practice of dowry continues to exist in our society. As a result, we all must begin taking action to combat it. Starting from our own homes is the first step. At home, both boys and girls should be treated similarly and given equal opportunity. Both of them should be educated and given the freedom to be completely self-sufficient. Education and freedom are the two most powerful and valuable gifts that parents can give to their daughters. Only education will allow her to be financially secure and a valuable family member, earning her respect and suitable family standing. As a result, the best dowry a father can bestow on his daughter is an excellent education, guidance, and motivation to pursue her aspirations. 

Another thing that needs to be done is make suitable legal amends.  No one can implement a law without the people's full cooperation. Enacting a law, without a doubt, establishes a pattern of behavior, engages social conscience, and aids social reformers in their efforts to repeal it. The system must give more moral value-based education to the common people to extend their brains and perspectives. 

Society should strive for gender equality. States should evaluate gender-disaggregated data across the life cycle — birth, early childhood, primary education, nutrition, livelihood, access to healthcare, and so on — to counteract gender disparities. Widening childcare and ensuring safe public transit is vital in decreasing workplace bias and establishing supportive work cultures. Men and women should have equal domestic chores and responsibilities. 

What do People think of the Dowry System?

Dowry is like a suicidal bag for many people who are not very strong financially. It should be completely stopped from all the country wherever it is followed. The government needs to take action in this so that no more crime takes place. In the modern era of India where people are reaching everywhere and achieving many things but still in many populations our thinking against dowry is the same. 

The Dowry system varies from state to state and also on the job profile of the groom. If we see in the north part of the country the groom having a government job, doctor or engineer then dowry is huge in terms of money, and whereas in the south part of the country, the bride is forced to give dowry in terms of land, jewellery, and money. It can be simply stated that if you can arrange a huge dowry you can get any groom for your daughter which is ethically and morally wrong. In ancient times. dowry was taken only from upper-caste families but now it is becoming a universal practice where everyone is forced to give dowry. In India, marriage is a big affair where both sides of the family call all the relatives and have to arrange everything from the beginning till the end of the marriage ceremony. It doesn't matter whether the bride is educated or not, they are still expected and forced in a way to give dowry for marriage. Though some may say that dowry is an involuntary act, in reality, it is voluntarily forced upon the bride’s family by the groom’s parents.

Dowry is giving rise to a lot of crimes in India. In some families, dowry is used as a threat or as a means to extract money from the bride's family irrespective of their financial condition. The north and east part of India show a high rate of dowry-related cases, many families subject the bride to domestic violence if their demands are not fulfilled. They will continue to abuse or threaten the bride at the hands of the husband or his family which unfortunately results in suicide. Nowadays, one can say that the groom's parents take dowry as a means of business from the bride's family. The dowry system is a problem for all families irrespective of their financial condition. Families might get any suitable groom to marry their daughter without giving dowry, it clearly shows that the dowry system is prevalent in the society and people are taking undue advantage of it under the garb of traditions.

The dowry that is taken by the groom’s side should be stopped everywhere, then only the country will be developed and the daughters can be independent. Dowry is also called ‘Dahej’ in Arabic, if it is given by the bride's side without any enforcement then only it is called a gift, else it becomes a crime. If the dowry system is completely wiped out then any bride's father will not have any burden and there will be no killing of girls after or before birth.

Dowry should be in the interest of the bride's family, not on demand by the groom's family. Dowry was made for the security of the bride to their new family where she marries and goes but over time people have changed its meaning to meet their needs. Let us all make endeavors to end this heinous social practice and safeguard our daughters and their bright futures. The important takeaway here is that parents should have the choice to happily give whatever they may desire to their daughters and nothing should be forced upon them in the name of traditions.