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Introduction:
A major breakthrough in women’s rights in India, The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence, 2005 was enacted by the Parliament to provide protection to women against violence from family.
- Causing hurt, injury or danger to life, limb, health, safety or well-being, whether mental or physical.
- Causing harm, injury, or danger to the woman with an intention to coerce her or any other person related to her to meet any demand for dowry.
- “Physical abuse” includes hurt of any kind. Assault, criminal intimidation and criminal force.
- “Sexual abuse” such as conduct of a sexual nature such as forced sexual intercourse, forcing the aggrieved person to watch pornography or other obscene material. Forcibly using woman to entertain others, any other act of sexual nature, abusing, humiliating, degrading or otherwise violative of one’s dignity.
- “Verbal and emotional abuse” such as Accusation/aspersion on character or conduct. Insult for not brining dowry, Insult for not having a male child. etc. Forcing to not attend school, college or any other educational institution preventing one from taking up a job repeated threats to cause pain to any person in whom the woman is interested. Preventing from marrying a person of your choice.
- “Economic abuse” such as not providing money for maintaining woman or her children Not providing food, clothes, medicine. etc, Forcing woman out of the house. Preventing from accessing or using any part of the house, preventing or obstructing one from carrying on employment Non-payment of rent in case of a rented accommodation, selling or pawing stridhan or any other valuables without informing and without consent. Forcibly taking away salary, income or wages etc. Non-payment of other bills such as electricity, etc.
Who is covered under the Act?
- The Act covers all women who may be mother, sister, wife, widow or partners living in a shared household. The relationship may be in nature of marriage or adoption. In addition relationships with family members living together as a joint family are also included. However, no female relative of the husband or the male partner can file a complaint against the wife or the female partner, for e.g. the mother-in-law cannot file an application against a daughter-in-law, but she can file an application against her daughter-in-law for abetting her son to commit violence against her.
Important observations made by the Court:
- Alongside, the Court termed the 2005 law on protection of women from domestic violence as a “milestone”
- Despite the 2005 law, offences against women is “rampant” in this country and they face “violence in some form or the other on almost every day”.
- A woman resigns her fate to the never ending cycle of enduring violence and discrimination as a daughter, a sister, a wife, a mother, a partner or a single woman in her lifetime.
- Non-retaliation by women against violence, coupled with the absence of laws addressing women’s issues, ignorance of the existing laws enacted for them and societal attitude makes them vulnerable.
Who can file a complaint?
- Any woman who alleges to have been subjected to any act of domestic violence by the offender or any person may file a complaint on her behalf
- A child is also entitled to relief under the Domestic Violence Act. The mother of such a child can make an application on behalf of her minor child (whether male or female). In cases where the mother makes an application to the court for herself, the children can also be added as co-applicants.
Against whom can a complaint be filed?
- Any adult male member who has been in a domestic relationship with the woman
- Relatives of the husband or the male partner
- Includes both male and female relatives of the male partner
To whom can information be given or complaint be made?
- Information may be given arid complaint can be made to a police officer/Protection Officer/Service provider (an NGO) or Magistrate.
What is a domestic relationship?
- Relationship between two persons who live or have at any point of time lived together in a shared household
- Includes relationship of consanguinity, marriage, relationship in the nature of marriage.
- Shared household is a household where the woman lives or has lived with the man in a domestic relationship. She may not be living in the shared household at the time of the application for relief but such women are entitled to relief under the Domestic Violence Act as long as the domestic relationship subsists.
- Every woman in a domestic relationship has the right to reside in the shared household, even if she does not have any right, title or interest in it.
Provision for shelter home and Medical Aid
An aggrieved person or on her behalf a Protection Officer or service provider can request to a person in charge of a shelter home or a medical facility to provide shelter or medical aid to her.
Who may file an application to the magistrate?
- An aggrieved person or
- A Protection Officer or
- Any other person on behalf of the aggrieved person may present an application to the magistrate
- It is the duty of the protection officer and the service provider to provide all assistance to the woman who is a victim of domestic violence.
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