Kerala Doctor Dies By Suicide After Groom Cancelled Wedding When Family Failed To Meet Dowry Demands

Dowry, greed, and treatment of women as assets and liabilities take another life as a young doctor in Kerala died by suicide. However, this is not the first case this year. Every year, we witness women taking their lives because their families cannot meet the dowry demands of the grooms. While dowry is illegal in India, people continue to follow the practice, belittle the bride’s family, and torture her post-wedding to ask for money from her parents. Many women succumb to the mental and physical pressure and take extreme measures to escape the situation.

Why Dr Shahna Died By Suicide?

According to reports, Dr Shahna has planned to marry E A Ruwise, a resident trainee doctor in a Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, hospital where she was working. Ruwise was also the state president of the Kerala Medical Postgraduate Association, a body that oversees resident trainee doctors in the state.

The state Minority Commission is overseeing the investigation, and AA Rasheed, the panel’s chairperson, has asked the district collector, director of medical education, and the city police commission to submit a report before the commission on December 14, 2023.

Number Of Dowry Deaths In India

According to a report published in Statista on November 20, 2023, India witnessed around 6800 deaths in 2021. However, there was an improvement in the number since 2014 when the country recorded 8500 dowry deaths.

On December 5, 2023, a man in Lucknow was arrested for murdering his wife for dowry. On August 2, 2023, a woman died in Noida after her in-laws tortured her for dowry.

The aforementioned two cases are from this year and highlight greed. In cases where weddings get called off, society often blames the bride’s family. It becomes humiliating for the woman and her family to see her wedding being called off as people point figures at them, talk behind them, and spread unnecessary rumours. Despite dowry being illegal in India, women continue to suffer as men and their families harass them and view them as money-making machines.

An educated woman like Dr Shahna was forced to take extreme steps because her family was humiliated. Despite the crime committed by the groom and his family, it was she who was shamed.

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Laws Against Dowry In India

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Jayantika Ganguly, Director, Corporated Courses & Special Projects, Lawsikho.com connected with us for a HaqSe session to talk about women’s dowry rights in India. She stated that the ‘Dowry Prohibition Act, of 1961,’ came into existence to prevent families from asking, giving, and taking dowry.

Anything valuable like property or sort of security amount that a bride’s family would give to the groom or his family is termed as dowry. It is a punishable offence in which the guilty can be sentenced to five years in jail and will have to pay ₹15,000 as a fine or an amount equivalent to the dowry.

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In case a woman is being harassed by her in-laws for dowry, she has the right (Legal Rights Every Woman Must Know) to file an FIR at the nearest police station, and the authorities will further investigate the case. However, you must know that police cannot take any action until they find the suspects guilty.