New Delhi | Legal experts on Wednesday flagged the "gross misuse" of laws related to domestic violence and dowry harassment, while calling for a "correct filtration mechanism", new gender neutral legislations and sensitising the police to curb filing of false cases.
The experts were speaking in the aftermath of the alleged suicide by 34-year-old techie, Atul Subhash, leaving behind a 24-page purported death note, giving extensive details of what he alleged was years-long emotional distress of marital issues; multiple cases filed against him and harassment by his wife, her relatives, and a judge based in Uttar Pradesh.
Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa termed the issue as “very serious” requiring a fitting solution.
“For many years I have seen how the provision has been grossly being misused by many people. It's a very serious matter and we have to find a solution. My own personal view is that make this section bailable. Also, if there is false complaint is filed, action should be taken against the erring complainant. Also false cases of outraging the modesty being filed against in-laws. We see it every day. Courts should start taking these issues very seriously. Police should be sensitised. They should not facilitate filing such false cases,” said Pahwa.
Supreme Court advocate Ashwani Dubey said there was a need for gender neutral laws.
“The whole premise of Section 498A is to protect women from being exploited, harassed, or abused physically or mentally. However, there are several instances where this regulation has become a scourge for men in society. The time has come for gender neutral laws. Also, courts must exercise caution in dowry harassment cases to prevent misuse of law and avoid unnecessary trouble to innocent family members,” he said.
Advocate Samvedna Verma, who has handled several domestic violence and dowry-related cases, said the legislative intent behind women friendly laws was to safeguard the rights and wellbeing of women “who are considered to be the vulnerable section of the society”.
“The purpose of these laws is to protect women from the atrocities caused due to family discord, domestic violence and financial hardships. However, it cannot be refuted that some women are misusing these laws to harass men and their family members to gain leverage in divorce proceedings, extort money and settle scores with them,” Verma said.
She said the problem was not with the women protection laws, but their misuse, which can be prevented by a correct filtration mechanism in place in our legal and administrative environment.
“Before beginning a trial or investigation the veracity of the allegations must be verified,” she said.
Bengaluru/Samastipur/Jaunpur | The family of the 34-year-old techie who allegedly died by suicide here, has demanded justice for him and strict action agsainst his harassers.
Atul Subhash, who worked for a private firm in the city, had left behind a 24-page purported death note, giving extensive details of what he alleged was years-long emotional distress of marital issues; multiple cases filed against him and harassment by his wife and relatives, and a judge based in Uttar Pradesh, police said.
Following Subhash's death, a case of abetment of suicide has been registered against his wife Nikita Singhania, her mother Nisha, father Anurag and uncle Sushil, a police official said.
Speaking to PTI Videos in Bengaluru, Subhash's brother Bikas said, "I want my brother to get justice. I want this country to have a legal process through which even men can get justice. I want strict action against those who are sitting on a legal chair and doing corruption because if this continues then how will people expect justice."
Alleging corruption in the system, he said justice can be expected only when it is corruption-free, when every party is heard equally and arguments are done based on facts.
"....can expect justice only when decisions are made on the basis of facts and if it does not happen, then people will slowly start losing faith in judicial system. It may lead to a situation where people may get afraid to get married. Men may start feeling that if they get married, they will just end up being an ATM machine for vending money," he alleged.
Subhash's body was found hanging at his residence in the Manjunath Layout area, which falls under the Marathahalli police station limits, on Monday. A placard reading "Justice is due" was found in the room where he allegedly ended his life.
Before taking the extreme step, he recorded an over 80-minute video on Rumble, explaining the circumstances behind his decision.
In the video, which has now gone viral on social media platforms, Subhash can be heard saying, "I feel that I should kill myself because the money I earn is making my enemies stronger. That same money will be used to destroy me, and this cycle will keep going."
Subhash's uncle Pawan Kumar alleged his nephew was being harassed and tortured for money and that he was also humiliated by his wife and the judge.
"What has happened is very unfortunate. He was losing the case (filed by his wife). He was being tortured. They (wife and family) were constantly demanding money from him. To the best of his capacity, he was giving her money for child maintenance."
Initially the family demanded Rs 40,000 per month, doubled it later and then wanted the deceased to provide Rs 1 lakh.
Kumar charged Subhash's wife and her family of 'minting' money from his nephew under the pretext of child maintenance, for the couple's four year-old son.
He wondered how much money would be required to raise a child of this age.
"His wife even said that he should commit suicide if he cannot pay the amount to which the judge also laughed. This really hurt him," he alleged.
Suicidal thoughts had been lingering in Subhash's mind for the last six months "and till the last moment, he didn't let us know anything."
Kumar said the family had no idea Subhash may do something like this. "He had made a time table for everything."
Subhash's cousin, Bajrang Agarwal alleged that the victim's wife and family were constantly demanding money from him. Till the time he was giving money, things were fine.
"When he stopped paying exorbitant amount as per their demands, the dispute started again and she started living separately with the child. Divorce case was going on. They filed so many cases against him, that he broke down and he ended his wife," he told PTI videos in Samastipur.
He demanded that those who had harassed Subhash should be punished so that he gets justice and that his soul can rest in peace.
Meanwhile, Nikita's uncle, Sushil Kumar claimed himself innocent and said that neither he nor any member of his family was present at the scene of the incident.
"I came to know that I am also named in the FIR. I am innocent. I wasn't even there. We got to know about his suicide through media. None of our family members were present at the scene of incident. There's a case going on in the court for the last three years and in this duration, we did not have any communication with him or his family. We are not at fault. Case is going on... Court will decide and give the verdict," he told PTI Videos in Jaunpur.
He further said that allegations levelled by Subhash are false and Nikita will soon answer to all the allegations.
Meanwhile, a police team probing the matter has reached Uttar Pradesh. The team will question the deceased's wife and her family members as part of the probe. "We are looking into all the allegations and the matter is being investigated from all angles", a senior police officer said.
According to police, preliminary investigations revealed Subhash had been facing marital discord with his wife, who had also registered a case against him in Uttar Pradesh. He also sent his death note via email to several people and shared it with a WhatsApp group of an NGO he was associated with, the officer said.
In his purported death note, Subhash mentioned getting married in 2019. The couple had their son the following year.
