The mirror crack’d from side to side

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act promises much, but will it stand up in implementation?

Nasrin Sultana Delhi

Life has little Salman Khan, Rahul Mahajan, Suhaib Illaysi, Navin Nischal, allegedly, did it. And women like Shweta Mahajan, Zeenat Aman and Somi Ali, allegedly, accept it. Crores, yes, crores of women, from IAS officers and doctors to housewives and maids, are victims in their own homes, and outside, of physical and mental violence inflicted by the men they are closest to —husbands, fathers, brothers and lovers, In the pativrata land of pati parmeshwar, where husband is god and sati is still glorified, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, marks a radical rupture, promising hope. The notification for the implementation of the Act has finally arrived, though doubts still remain as to whether it will indeed be effective on the ground in providing relief to and protecting women who suffer daily invisible and visible violence trapped within domestic walls.

According to a Centre for Social Research survey (March 2003), five crore married women in India are victims of domestic violence. Only 0.1 per cent of these cases are being reported. Out of every 100 cases that are ordered for investigation under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), only two meet with conviction of the offender.

Domestic Bill No 116, which had been pending before Lok Sabha for many years, officially became the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (DVA), 2005, on October 27, 2006.  DVA extends help to the already existing Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Section 498A of the IPC states that a husband or relative of a husband of a woman, who subjects her to cruelty that is likely to drive the woman to suicide; or gravely injures her life, limb or health; or forces the woman or her relatives to give some property, should be punished with imprisonment for a term that may extend to three years and shall also be liable to be fined.

For the first time, the definition of ‘violence’ under DVA also includes abuse or the threat of abuse—physical, sexual (including marital rape), verbal, emotional or economic. “Insults, ridicule, humiliation, name calling and insults or ridicule, specially with regard to not having a child or a male child” are regarded as domestic violence. The Act also encompasses child sexual abuse; abuse of children can be reported by members of the family or children themselves. Harassment by way of unlawful dowry demands to the woman or her relatives also comes under its purview.

Under DVA, women or anyone on their behalf, who has witnessed the violence, can directly file a complaint with a magistrate. The court has to take cognisance of the complaint by instituting a hearing within three days and disposing of the case within 60 days of the first hearing. The etition that the complainant files in the magistrate’s office is called an “incident report”  and not  First Information Report (FIR). Punishment can range from a jail term of up to one year and/or fine of up to Rs 20,000.

In the interim, the magistrate has to authorise a Protection Officer, drawn from the state’s police (preferably a policewoman) and a Service Provider, such as a shelter home or a social activist, to investigate the case, afford protection to the aggrieved woman, and provide her with a place to stay, should she not wish to go back to her residence.