Marriage has eternally been considered a sacrament between a male and a female laying down the foundation of a family. It goes back to the time of our mythological history in which this union has been acknowledged as a need of companionship between two individuals through joy and sorrow, ups and downs, fulfilment of temptations and enticement and mainly focusing on procreation of children. Manu, the first law giver, considered marriage a sanctified relationship and followed: ‘Let mutual fidelity continue until death’. In ancient nomadic India, the urge for marital relationship evolved with civilization of society which developed a sense of mutual obligation and responsibilities in a ménage to actively participate in household matters and taking care of offspring. These obligations were bound to be performed by both the parents and led to division of duties and made a clear demarcation as to the onus of the wife and the husband in a family. Scholars may argue that espousal is a private union but in practical life it is not only restricted as an association of a man and a woman but is a social institution comprising of great public ethics and concern.
“Marriage is a socially sanctioned union of male and female for the purpose of establishing (a) household (b) entering into sex relationships (c) procreating and (d) providing care for the offspring”.
H T Mazumdar, Sociologist
The main object of marriage has in perpetuum been co-existence of parties in harmony and mutual confidence but soon with the development of an evil side of the society, the object destructed and gave birth to heinous acts of cruelty, desertion, dowry deaths, trafficking, female foeticide, starvation, death threats etc.
For females, raising their voice against their husbands and in laws is still considered a sin and therefore, since a tender age girls have been taught to compromise with their comfort and handle the pressure of their marital relationship, supposing themselves duty bound to undergo the plight of a wedlock, hence a woman is molded in such a manner by the society that she gains the courage and stands affirm to tolerate every physical, mental and emotional torture coming her way. Due to the non-progressive thinking of our community, women prefer to end their lives instead of reporting the monstrous crimes they face, hence leading to a steady decline in the sex ratio from 972 females for 1000 males in 1901 to 927 females for 1000 males in 1991. Since time immemorial, a steep rise in suicidal cases in females has been found prevalent. Some studies mention that suicide attempts in women in India is 1.2 times higher in comparison to men. It has been pointed out that increased numbers of suicide cases in Indian women is because of the traditional practice of arranged weddings which forces a woman to stay in an abusive relationship in the fear of societal and peer pressure.
LISTEN TO HER
Amidst the Coronavirus alias COVID-19 pandemic, the world is forced to stay inside the house wherein, while the world is collectively fighting against this crisis, the families locked in their respective homes are also fighting with a long prone disease of domestic violence (aka DOVID – Domestic Violence Disease). Where on one hand, the safest place from corona is home, on the other hand, it is the most unsafe for those who are fighting from DOVID individually. To my shock, within one month of national lockdown, the statistical data released by National Commission for Women shows that 315 Domestic violence complaints have been received in the month of April, which is the highest since last year August. In view of this, the National Commission for Women has launched a WhatsApp number – 7217735372 to receive reports of any violence against women. In the wake of the repercussions of this pandemic, actor and director, Nandita Das came forward to raise the issue of domestic violence taking place in this situation, she has released a 7-minute short film titled “Listen to her” addressing the struggle of women to survive inside as well as outside the house. The movie is supported by international organisations including UNESCO, UNICEF, UNFPA, UN Women and the South Asia Foundation. As a result of our present situation in this pandemic, the lockdown has come up as a blessing in disguise for some and a curse in disguise for many.
A house where anyone is unsafe is not a home.
Click here to read our article on “Laws Governing Domestic Violence”.
