Dowry, Its Causes and Consequences: A Sociological Study of Dowry Harassment and Death Cases in Aligarh District of UP

Dowry refers to “the property, money, ornaments or any other form of wealth which a man or his family
receives from his wife or her family at the time of marriage. Dowry is both a practice and a problem with
Indian marriage” (Haveripeth, 2013).The practice of giving dowry was meant to assist a newly-wed couple
to start their life together with ease; however, now it has become a commercial transaction in which
monetary considerations receive priority over the personal merits of the bride. Dowry system has given rise
to many socio economic problems with very serious consequences. Numerous incidents of bride burning,
harassment and physical torture of newlywed women and various kinds of pressure tactics being adopted by
the husbands/in-laws‟ pressurizing for more dowry have compelled the social reformers and the
intelligentsia to give serious thoughts to various aspects associated with the institution of dowry (Sachdeva,
1998).Government of India enacted “Dowry Prohibition Act” in 1961, which was further amended in 1985
to control this menace. In spite of this Act, the “give and take” phenomenon of dowry is practiced widely
throughout India, irrespective of caste and class (Grantham, 2002). In many cases, when dowry amount is
not considered sufficient, the bride is often harassed, abused and tortured (Singh, 2005). Dowry related
violence and bride burning (dowry death) are only peculiar to our country and beside husband, his kin also
join together in persecuting the bride as the dowry and related customs provide a good excuse to them for
humiliating, insulting and even beating up of woman (Haveripeth, 2013)