Types of Crime Against Women

Through The ages, there have been various crimes and various forms of crimes practised in our country. Few prominent amongst them are as follows:
1.) Sati Pratha
2.) Dowry and Dowry Deaths.
3.) Rape
4.) Prostitution and Immoral Woman Trafficing
5.) Domestic Violence
6.) Child Marriage

Now We shall briefly understand about the origin of these humanly sins and as to how did it become a practise and came into origin.

1.) Sati Pratha – The burning of the widow : Sati is described as a Hindu custom in India in which the widow was burnt to ashes on her dead husband’s pyre or a wife immolated herself at the funeral pyre of her husband. Basically the custom of Sati was believed to be a voluntary Hindu act in which the woman voluntary decides to end her life with her husband after his death. But there were many incidences in which the women were forced to commit Sati, sometimes even dragged against her wish to the lighted pyre. Sati in Hinduism thus means a woman fully dedicated to her husband and it was never a practice or a pratha during early days. Some instances of voluntary self-immolation by both women and men that may be regarded as at least partly historical accounts are included in the Mahabharata and other works. Also, neither immolation nor the desire for self-immolation are regarded as a custom in the Mahabharata. Use of the term ‘sati’ to describe the custom of self-immolation does not occur in the Mahabarata, unlike other customs, such as the Rajasuya yagna. The self-immolations are viewed as an expression of extreme grief at the loss of a beloved one.

Though Sati is considered a Hindu custom, the women, known as Sati in Hindu religious literature, did not commit suicide on their dead husband’s pyre. The first woman known as Sati was the consort of Lord Shiva. She burnt herself in fire as protest against her father who did not give her consort Shiva the respect she thought he deserved, while burning herself she prayed to reborn again as the new consort of Shiva, which she became and her name in the new incarnation was Parvati. Other famous woman in Hindu literature titled Sati was Savitri. When Savitri’s husband Satyavan died, the Lord of death, Yama arrived to take his soul. Savitri begged Yama to restore Satyavan and take her life instead, which he could not do. So Savitri followed Lord Yama a long way. After a long way in which Yama noticed that Savitri was losing strength but was still following him and her dead husband, Yama offered Savitri a boon, anything other than her husband’s life. Savitri asked to have children from Satyavan. In order to give Savitri her boon, Lord Yama had no choice but to restore Satyavan to life and so Savitri gained her husband back.

This act, which was initially performed by the consort of shiv to spend her future births with her, lately became a practise when people thought it was a custom and forcefully started setting widows of the deceased man to pyre. Few reliable records exist of the practice before the time of the Gupta empire, approximately 400 CE. After about this time, instances of sati began to be marked by inscribed memorial stones. The earliest of these are found in Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, though the largest collections date from several centuries later, and are found in Rajasthan. These stones, called devli, or sati-stones, became shrines to the dead woman, who was treated as an object of reverence and worship. They are most common in western India. One of the prominent reasons for sati was, that A widow’s status was looked upon as an unwanted burden that prevented her from participating in the household work. Her touch, her voice, her very appearance was considered unholy, impure and something was to be shunned and abhorred. Sati still occurs, albeit rarely, in the rural areas. A well documented case from 1987 was that of 18-year old Roop Kanwar.

In response to this incident, additional recent legislation against the practice was passed, first by the state government of Rajasthan, then by the central government of India. In 2002, a 65-year-old woman by the name of Kuttu died after sitting on her husband’s funeral pyre in the Indian Panna district. On 18 May 2006, Vidyawati, a 35-year-old woman allegedly committed sati by jumping into the blazing funeral pyre of her husband in Rari-Bujurg Village, Fatehpur district in the State of Uttar Pradesh. On 21 August 2006, Janakrani, a 40-year-old woman, burnt to death on the funeral pyre of her husband Prem Narayan in Sagar district. On October 11, 2008, a 75-year-old woman committed sati by jumping into her 80-year-old husband’s funeral pyre at Checher in the Kasdol block of Chhattisgarh’s Raipur. 2.) Dowry and Dowry Death : “Dowry” refers to money, goods or property that a woman brings into the marriage – it is paid by the woman’s family to the man’s family. Dowry originated in upper caste families as the wedding gift to the bride from her family. The dowry was later given to help with marriage expenses and became a form of insurance in the case that her in-laws mistreated her. Although the dowry was legally prohibited in 1961, it continues to be highly institutionalized. The groom often demands a dowry consisting of a large sum of money, automobiles, farm animals, furniture, and electronics.

The practice of dowry abuse is rising in India. The most severe in “bride burning”, the burning of women whose dowries were not considered sufficient by their husband or in-laws. Most of these incidents are reported as accidental burns in the kitchen or are disguised as suicide. It is evident that there exist deep rooted prejudices against women in India. Cultural practices such as the payment of dowry tend to subordinate women in Indian society. Though prohibited by law in 1961, the extraction of DOWRY from the bride’s family prior to marriage still occurs. When the dowry amount is not considered sufficient or is not forthcoming, the bride is often harassed, abused and made miserable. This abuse can escalate to the point where the husband or his family burn the bride, often by pouring kerosene on her and lighting it, usually killing her. The official records of these incidents are low because they are often reported as accidents or suicides by the family. In Delhi, a woman is burned to death almost every twelve hours.

The number of dowry murders is increasing. In 1988, 2,209 women were killed in dowry related incidents and in 1990, 4,835 were killed . It is important to reiterate that these are official records, which are immensely under reported. The lack of official registration of this crime is apparent in Delhi, where ninety percent of cases of women burnt were recorded as accidents, five percent as suicide and only the remaining five percent were shown as murder . According to Government figures there were a total of 5,377 dowry deaths in 1993, an increase of 12% from 1992. Despite the existence of rigorous laws to prevent dowry-deaths under a 1986 amendment to the Indian Penal Code (IPC), convictions are rare, and judges (usually men) are often uninterested and susceptible to bribery. Recent newspaper reports have focused on the alarming rate of deaths of married women in Hamirpur, Mandi and Bilaspur districts in the state of Himachal Pradesh. A Survey Suggests, it is primarily the societal perception of woman being less productive than man that define woman’s place in society. This manifests in what she calls “Zero-political Status”, and denial of basic civil rights to them.

She observes that dowry is a clear affirmation of the fact that one’s gender determines one’s worth or significance. Since worth is distributed unequally amongst the sexes at birth, worth-deficiency amongst females can be offset by material additives that is dowry. The roots of this worth deficiency of women are so deep-rooted that even the brides who earn more than their husbands are made to feel an obligation to supply dowry goods and services along after their marriage just as are the women who earn nothing. The dowry deaths, therefore, she observes, do not occur because there is a mismatch between gifts demanded by in-laws and presents received, but because young married women customarily have no political significance in their new families. The continuous demand for dowry is but one of the ways in which the deficient political status is exploited. This deficiency is used to maltreat her in countless other ways too. Therefore, the term ‘dowry-deaths’ is a misnomer because dowry related harassment occurs as part of a larger mandate to oppress a human with zero-political status. Dowry is hardly ever the single cause of so called dowry deaths.

In other words, even if demands for dowry were to be satisfied fully, young women would continue to face torture and harassment in their in-laws homes because of their custom-sanctioned-inferiority that robs them of their basic human rights. The Madhya Pradesh state government in regards to the same is now running various policies to decrease and abolish female feuticide and also provide better livelihood to them. The Very famous amongst them is “Beti Bachao Andolan”. The practice of dowry abuse is rising in India. The most severe in “bride burning”, the burning of women whose dowries were not considered sufficient by their husband or in-laws. Most of these incidents are reported as accidental burns in the kitchen or are disguised as suicide. It is evident that there exist deep rooted prejudices against women in India. Cultural practices such as the payment of dowry tend to subordinate women in Indian society. Though prohibited by law in 1961, the extraction of DOWRY from the bride’s family prior to marriage still occurs. When the dowry amount is not considered sufficient or is not forthcoming, the bride is often harassed, abused and made miserable.

This abuse can escalate to the point where the husband or his family burn the bride, often by pouring kerosene on her and lighting it, usually killing her. The official records of these incidents are low because they are often reported as accidents or suicides by the family. In Delhi, a woman is burned to death almost every twelve hours . The number of dowry murders is increasing. In 1988, 2,209 women were killed in dowry related incidents and in 1990, 4,835 were killed . It is important to reiterate that these are official records, which are immensely under reported. The lack of official registration of this crime is apparent in Delhi, where ninety percent of cases of women burnt were recorded as accidents, five percent as suicide and only the remaining five percent were shown as murder . According to Government figures there were a total of 5,377 dowry deaths in 1993, an increase of 12% from 1992. Despite the existence of rigorous laws to prevent dowry-deaths under a 1986 amendment to the Indian Penal Code (IPC), convictions are rare, and judges (usually men) are often uninterested and susceptible to bribery.

Recent newspaper reports have focused on the alarming rate of deaths of married women in Hamirpur, Mandi and Bilaspur districts in the state of Himachal Pradesh. A Survey Suggests, it is primarily the societal perception of woman being less productive than man that define woman’s place in society. This manifests in what she calls “Zero-political Status”, and denial of basic civil rights to them. She observes that dowry is a clear affirmation of the fact that one’s gender determines one’s worth or significance. Since worth is distributed unequally amongst the sexes at birth, worth-deficiency amongst females can be offset by material additives that is dowry. The roots of this worth deficiency of women are so deep-rooted that even the brides who earn more than their husbands are made to feel an obligation to supply dowry goods and services along after their marriage just as are the women who earn nothing. The dowry deaths, therefore, she observes, do not occur because there is a mismatch between gifts demanded by in-laws and presents received, but because young married women customarily have no political significance in their new families.

The continuous demand for dowry is but one of the ways in which the deficient political status is exploited. This deficiency is used to maltreat her in countless other ways too. Therefore, the term ‘dowry-deaths’ is a misnomer because dowry related harassment occurs as part of a larger mandate to oppress a human with zero-political status. Dowry is hardly ever the single cause of so called dowry deaths. In other words, even if demands for dowry were to be satisfied fully, young women would continue to face torture and harassment in their in-laws homes because of their custom-sanctioned-inferiority that robs them of their basic human rights. The Madhya Pradesh state government in regards to the same is now running various policies to decrease and abolish female feuticide and also provide better livelihood to them. The Very famous amongst them is “Beti Bachao Andolan”. 3.) Rape : The Most Henious Crime against Women : Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person’s consent.

The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent, such as one who is unconscious, incapacitated, or below the legal age of consent. There are several types of rape, generally categorized by reference to the situation in which it occurs, the sex or characteristics of the victim, and/or the sex or characteristics of the perpetrator. Different types of rape include but are not limited to: date rape, gang rape, marital rape, incestual rape, child sexual abuse, prison rape, acquaintance rape, war rape and statutory rape. Rape in India is one of India’s most common crimes against women.Marital rape that occurs when spouses are living together can only be dealt under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 which only provides civil remedies to victims (it is a form of non-criminal domestic violence). Marital rape is not a criminal offense, except when spouses are separated. Rape cases in India have doubled between 1990 and 2008.

Below is the Incidence and rate of Cognizable Crimes (IPC) and % change during the years: Incidence and rate of Cognizable Crimes (IPC) and % change during the years: Crime head| 2001| 2006| 2007| 2008| 2009| 2010

Rape (Section 376 IPC)| 16075(1.6%)| 19348(1.7%)| 20737(1.8%)| 21467(1.9%)| 21397(1.8%)| 22172(1.9%)|
In ancient history, rape was viewed less as a type of assault on the female, than a serious property crime against the man to whom she belonged, typically the father or husband. The loss of virginity was an especially serious matter. The damage due to loss of virginity was reflected in her reduced prospects in finding a husband and in her bride price. This was especially true in the case of betrothed virgins, as the loss of chastity was perceived as severely depreciating her value to a prospective husband. In such cases, the law would void the betrothal and demand financial compensation from the rapist, payable to the woman’s household, whose “goods” were “damaged”. Under biblical law, the rapist might be compelled to marry the unmarried woman instead of receiving the civil penalty if her father agreed. This was especially prevalent in laws where the crime of rape did not include, as a necessary element, the violation of the woman’s body, thus dividing the crime in the current meaning of rape and a means for a man and woman to force their families to permit marriage. The word rape itself originates from the Latin verb rapere: to seize or take by force.

The word originally had no sexual connotation and is still used generically in English. The history of rape, and the alterations of its meaning, is quite complex. In Roman law, rape, or raptus was classified as a form of crimen vis, “crime of assault.” The concept of raptuswas applied to the abduction of a woman against the will of the man under whose authority she lived, and sexual intercourse was not even a necessary element. Like theft or robbery, rape was originally considered a “private wrong” iniuria privita, a crime between the abductor and the legal guardian of the woman in question. It was made into a “public wrong” iniuria publica by the Roman Emperor Constantine. 4.) Prostitution: Prostitution is the business or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute or sex worker, and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms. Prostitution is one of the branches of the sex industry. The legal status of prostitution varies from country to country, from being permissible but unregulated, to a punishable crime or to a regulated profession.

Estimates place the annual revenue generated from the global prostitution industry to be over $100 billion. Prostitution is sometimes referred to as “the world’s oldest profession”. Prostitution occurs in a variety of forms. Brothels are establishments specifically dedicated to prostitution. In escort prostitution, the act may take place at the customer’s residence or hotel room (referred to as out-call), or at the escort’s residence or in a hotel room rented for the occasion by the escort (called in-call). Another form is street prostitution. Women involved in Prostitution are called Prostitutes. “Prostitute” is derived from the Latin prostituta. Some sources cite the verb as a composition of “pro” meaning “up front” or “forward” and “situere”, defined as “to offer up for sale”.

Another explanation is that “prostituta” is a composition of pro and statuere (to cause to stand, to station, place erect). A literal translation therefore is: “to put up front for sale” or “to place forward”. The online Etymology Dictionary states, “The notion of ‘sex for hire’ is not inherent in the etymology, which rather suggests one ‘exposed to lust’ or sex ‘indiscriminately offered.'” People often debate about making prostitution legal in india, believing, it will not only provide security to workers engaged in this industry but also prtect their rights and reduce other crimes such as Rape. Prostitution has existed in India, since Time immemorial. It is also referred to in Vedas, Puranas, Mahabharata and Ramayana. As a matter of fact, public women occupied an important place in the city life of Ancient India. They were called “Beauties of City” and the Purana’s state that very sight of prostitute brought good luck. They had an honoured place, because it was believed that cohabitation of men with the Apsaras of heaven had resulted in the creation of prostitutes.

Prostitution may sometimes be associated with illegal, abusive and dangerous activities such as human trafficking, sexual slavery, sexual exploitation of children, assault, drug dealing and illegal immigration. One view maintains that this results from prostitution being stigmatized or illegal, or both. Another, however, believes that legalizing and regulating prostitution does not improve the situation, but instead makes it worse, creating a’s parallel illegal prostitution industry, and failing to dissociate the legal part of the sex trade from crime.

5.) Domestic Violence: Domestic Violence can be described as when one adult in a relationship misuses power to control another. It is the establishment of control and fear in a relationship through violence and other forms of abuse. The violence may involve physical abuse, sexual assault and threats. Sometimes it’s more subtle, like making someone feel worthless, not letting them have any money, or not allowing them to leave the home. Social isolation and emotional abuse can have long-lasting effects as well as physical violence. Domestic Violence isn’t just hitting, or fighting, or an occasional argument. It’s an abuse of power. The abuser tortures and controls the victim by calculated threats, intimidation, and physical violence. . Although both men and women can be abused, in most cases, the victims are women. Children in homes where there is domestic violence are also abused or neglected. Although the woman is usually the primary target, violence is sometimes directed toward children, and sometimes toward family members and friends.

6.) Child Marriage: Child marriage and child betrothal customs occur in various times and places, whereby children are given in matrimony – before marriageable age as defined by the commentator and often before puberty. Today such customs are fairly widespread in parts of Africa, Asia, Oceania and South America: in former times it occurred also in Europe. It is frequently associated with arranged marriage. In some cases only one marriage-partner is a child, usually the female, due to importance placed upon female virginity, the perceived inability of women to work for money and to women’s shorter reproductive life relative to men’s. An increase in the advocacy of human rights, whether as women’s rights or as children’s rights, has caused traditions of child marriage to decrease in many areas. Child marriage, also known as Bal Vivaha, is believed to have begun during the medieval ages of India.

At this time, the political atmosphere was turbulent and ruled by Delhi Sultans in an absolute monarchy government. The sultans had an extreme commitment to their religion and forced many to convert, causing socio-cultural unrest, and Hindu women suffered the most. These days of the Delhi Sultans produced practices such as child marriage and lowered the status of women even further. They invented the ill omen of giving birth to a female baby and believed that young unmarried girls caused disaster. Child marriage became a widespread cultural practice with various reasons to justify it, and many marriages were performed while the girl was still an infant. The caste system is also believed to have contributed to the growth of child marriage. Castes, which are based on birth and heredity, do not allow two people to marry if they are from different castes.

This system was threatened by young people’s emotions and desires to marry outside their caste, so out of necessity, child marriage was created to ensure the caste system continued. Child marriage tradition in India has social reasons too. Indians used to perform child marriages to get their girls protected against rapes and abductions by foreign rulers. The other reasons were that to strengthen family relations and bonds, and to satisfy the elder people who wanted to see their grand children marriages before their death. However in child marriage system, the parents used to send their girls to their husband’s house only after attaining Puberty. The young husband and wife used to lead family life through out regardless of likes and dislikes. In some economically poor families, the parents used to perform marriages to their under aged girls even with much elderly men. Some families used to perform child marriages with a fear that the children may deviate off the track after reaching teenage.