Bangalore, July 28 (IANS) As 25 women poured out their stories of pain, suffering and survival — after being brutally harassed by their husbands and in-laws for dowry — at a unique “court” here Tuesday, activists demanded a stringent law to end the social menace.
Vimochana, the Asian Women’s Rights Council (AWRC) and 40 other women’s organisations came together to hold the India Court of Women on Dowry, called “Daughters of Fire”.

The special court was summoned to hear cases of dowry related violence from across the country, and tried to bring a solution to the scourge of dowry in Indian society.

A series of roundtable discussions by experts on different aspects of the issue of dowry and related forms of violence were held Monday, as part of the two-day event that ended with the court session.

“As part of the court, we’ve invited 25 victims of dowry from across the country. The court session was an effort to bring to light the amount of violence and torture that victims of dowry have to go through. Moreover, the court got a first person account of the violence endured by victims,” Shakun, a senior member of Vimochana, told IANS.

A group of experts listened to the testimonies of victims.

“After the court session, we’ve come to the conclusion that more stringent laws are needed to end the dowry menace in the country,” said Shakun.

Nandini, a member of the NGO Jagori, said only tough laws could bring an end to the horrible episodes of dowry related violence in the country.

However, in spite of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, perceived as “stringent”, the rising number of dowry related cases across the country indicates that it has hardly proved a deterrent.

More than 6,000 dowry-related cases are registered on an average annually, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

According to the latest NCRB report, there were about 6,787 dowry death cases registered in India in 2005. Incidents of dowry deaths during 2005 (6,787) increased significantly by 46.0 percent over the 1995 level (4,648).

According to police, every year over 2,500 cases of bride-burning due to dowry are reported.

“We are going to submit a detailed report of the two-day event to the ministry of women and child development,” said Donna Fernandes, another member of Vimochana.

A victim who testified at the court said she suffered regular beating and mental torture at the hands of her husband of five long years, before ending her marriage.

“Mental and physical harassment was part and parcel of my five years of married life. My husband always demanded dowry from my parents, but as my parents were unable to give it, he used to beat me. After that I left my husband forever. Now I am staying with my parents,” said a dowry victim from Bangalore who did not wish to be named.

Another dowry victim from Chennai said on condition of anonymity: “The court gave me a platform to narrate my story to the experts. They patiently listened to each one of us, and we are hopeful that together we can end the system of dowry from the country.”

This court, however, has no legal authority.