All wedding gifts may now have to be listed

Marriages may be made in heaven but the government is going to keep a close watch on what goes on in the ground.

After scant success at curbing the age-old practice of dowry, sometimes masquerading as exchange of gifts, the government is now planning to bring all exchanges related to marriages strictly on record.

The ministry of women and child development (MWCD) is planning to make it mandatory for the families of the bride and the groom to maintain a list of gifts and other exchanges made at the time of marriage. The Dowry Prohibition Act (DPA), 1961, will be amended to provide it with more teeth while plugging loopholes that allow women to misuse the act.

The list, in the form of a sworn affidavit, has to be notarised and signed by a protection officer or a dowry prohibition officer. Both the parties will have a copy of the list. The punishment for lapse is heavy, including a three-year jail term, not only for the bride and the groom but also their parents.

The ministry will move a cabinet note seeking amendment to the existing provisions of the DPA. It is expected to be placed before the cabinet for approval by the end of this month.

The amendments include lesser penalty for dowry givers; allowing a woman to file a case where she resides permanently or temporarily; including parents and relatives of the bride as aggrieved persons who can complain; and linking the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence (PWDV) with the dowry laws for quick relief.

The definition of dowry is also being widened by changing the phrase “in connection with marriage” to “given before the marriage, at the time and at any time after the marriage.” In case of a woman’s death, all property obtained as dowry would need to be returned to the parents of the woman or her children.

Though the existing Section 3 of the DPA stresses that there must be a list of all presents exchanged, the ministry believes there aren’t adequate guidelines for differentiating items given under the guise of ‘gift/presents’ from those extorted as ‘dowry’.    

“Though the DPA already has the provision for maintaining a list of gifts, it is not enforced in the absence of a mandatory norm. There are also several Supreme Court decisions that have stressed on it. The amendment makes it compulsory,’’ said a senior ministry official.

The ministry wants a clear distinction between `gifts’ given voluntarily from those given under duress or compulsion. It also wants the expression `presents’ used in Section 3 (2) of the DPA to be substituted with `gifts’ to indicate the voluntary intent behind the exchange. The expression `gifts’ finds definition in law under the Gift-Tax Act 1958.

“The maintenance of lists of gifts is crucial for the effective implementation of the law,” the National Commission for Women (NCW), which had prepared the amendments, explained.

Senior Supreme Court advocate KTS Tulsi termed the amendments as a positive move. “Mandatory registration of lists would not only facilitate having a proof but also eliminate the possibility of abuse of law by making false allegations,’’ he said.

These changes are in the right balance as they not only protect the women but also safeguard the men, he added. “These changes would ensure speedy disposal of cases. Linking it to the PWDV Act would avoid multiplicity of cases in courts,’’ Tulsi said.

For a change, this amendment has also been welcomed by the men’s organisations. “This saves even the man from getting caught in false dowry cases,” said Virag Dhulia, of Save Indian Family Foundation, an organisation of harassed husbands.

Among other amendments, the ministry has also proposed a lighter punishment for dowry givers since a five-year imprisonment was acting as a deterrent for the girl’s family to complain. The amendment seeks one-year imprisonment for dowry givers unless they prove that they were compelled. Tulsi agreed that this would encourage more parents to come up and complain.

“Parents are often compelled to pay dowry to ensure the security and happiness of their daughter in her matrimonial home. Hence, the giver and the taker of dowry cannot be placed on the same footing under the law,” the NCW clarified.

All state and central government male employees would need to furnish declarations after marriage stating that they have not accepted any dowry. The declaration has to be signed by their spouses, fathers and fathers-in-law. Incidentally, this practice is already mandatory for Kerala state government employees.