Maximum number of death (56.56%) occurred between 18-25 years of age and that too within first 3 years of marriage (57.47%). Rohilkhand Medical College & Hospital, Bareilly, UP, INDIA. He has to investigate every dowry death case with consideration of both Other features include disseminated intravascular coagulation, hepatic necrosis and renal failure. Such a way of ending life is peculiarly common in our country. Magistrate inquest in dowry death In dowry deaths, investigating officer plays a very important role to bring out justice as well as on other hand to save the husband or in laws if at all they are not guilty for the offence and are falsely being caught up in trap. No medical Professional is allowed to advertise in any way which invites attention to his professional position, skill, associations, affiliations, honors or such character that would ordinarily result in his self aggrandizements. MECHANISMS OF TOXICITY: Both forms of poisoning are mediated by phosphine which has been thought to be toxic because it inhibits cytochrome c oxidase. Mostly young, Hindu married, non graduate of low and lower-middle class families were involved. Advertisement is a public notice offering or asking for goods, services etc. Section 2 of The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 defines “Dowry” as any property or valuable security given or agreed to be given either directly or indirectly between the concerned parties before or after the marriage as a consideration for the same. It has been shown recently in nematodes that phosphine rapidly perturbs mitochondrial morphology, inhibits oxidative respiration by 70%, and causes a severe drop in mitochondrial membrane potential. A Dowry (Dahej) is the transfer or a gift of parental property which is made during the lifetime of the grantor (parents) to a daughter at her marriage rather than the inheritance of the property which shall take place on the event of owner’s (parents) death. It was held by the court that just because there was no expressed agreement of dowry between the parties doesn’t mean that no conviction can be made for dowry, whether there was any demand for dowry or not would depend on the facts and circumstances of each case. This failure of cellular respiration is likely to be due to a mechanism other than inhibition of cytochrome C oxidase. But, it becomes important to understand the role of evidence in such cases. nature followed by 30% suicidal deaths. The main location of incidence of dowry death was in-laws house followed by husband's house totaling 523 cases. Medicolegal outlook in PC- PNDT. It may include cash, jewellery, electrical … A 'burning' topic in India is the burn deaths of young females. its medico legal importance. Baldev Singh v State of Punjab AIR 2009 SC 913. © 2008-2020 ResearchGate GmbH. She would expect to be a mother someday and then expect to be mother-in-law,grand-mother and so on. And deserve to be a dignified status in society. Death because of dowry is a very serious crime, but court are also careful while examining such cases because the punishment prescribed for dowry death is very severe and it would be highly unjustifiable to punish the person who is not involved in such crime. These are the usual explanations given in post-mortem requisition documents furnished by the police, but on enquiry from relatives and neighbours many were found not to be true. Comprehensive study was done revealing the need of various socio-cultural and legal measures to be taken to handle the grave results of this study. Webster dictionary defines “Dowry” as the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings to her husband in marriage. On the other hand, there is some National Law and now an International law, a Right to adequate health. The major lethal consequence of phosphide ingestion, profound circulatory collapse, is secondary to factors including direct effects on cardiac myocytes, fluid loss, and adrenal gland damage. The provision is given wider scope as to cover all deaths of wives who are dead within seven years of marriage, the presumption of offence provides this scope. The death of a woman should have been caused by burns or bodily injury or it should occur that the death is not caused under normal circumstances 2. It imposes a penalty in section 3 in case of exchange or demand for dowry. 1st Ed. By the same amendment, sec 113 B had been added to the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. 15.84% cases were labelled as Alleged Dowry Deaths. Amongst 864 female victims, 467 females were married and 221 females died within seven years of their marriage. India reports the highest total number of dowry deaths with … A total of 569 alleged dowry death cases were recorded during the study period in Allahabad range, which included districts of Allahabad, Fatehpur and Pratapgalrh. And, for this purpose evidence becomes very crucial. Throughout most of India's history, women have been targeted as unimportant, burdensome, and disposable. A total of 109 cases of death due to fatal burns were brought for autopsy at a tertiary care centre in Mumbai, India during the period January 2014 to July 2015, were studied. Thermal burn as a common cause is also concluded by Kulshrestha P et al [9] , Sharma BR et al. "Whoever commits dowry death shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than seven years but which may extend to imprisonment of life." Precisely, it is a payment of cash or gifts from the bride's family to the bridegroom's family upon marriage. Moreover, it was held by the court that the expression “soon before her death” present in Section 304-B of Indian Penal Code, 1860 is present with the ides of proximity test. You can request the full-text of this article directly from the authors on ResearchGate. It was opined by the court that “soon before death” is not interval between cruelty and harassment and death of the woman, but it denotes the existence of a proximate and live-link between the effects of cruelty based on dowry demand and the death concerned. All rights reserved. When a woman enters into a union she has many salubrious expectations. Factors influencing, Infliction of Injuries and Healing, Different legal questions, examination and certification of wounds, Wound as a cause of death: Primary and Secondary. Section 498-A of the same act relates to the cruelty on a woman by her husband or nay of his relatives. Jaypee publishers. Phosphine-induced impairment of myocardial contractility and fluid loss leads to circulatory failure, and critically, pulmonary edema supervenes, though whether this is a cardiogenic or non-cardiogenic is not always clear. This is consistent with the findings of other authors. There is no antidote to phosphine or metal phosphide poisoning and many patients die despite intensive care. And, also it is a principle under criminal law that an accused should be convicted only if the offence could be proven beyond reasonable doubt. Offences committed under Section 304-B and 498-A are non-bailable offence which makes difficult for the accused person to get bail, and courts remain careful while granting bail in cases relating to dowry death. 2. Fire is a well-known double edged sword for human beings as it served as well as destroyed mankind. Section 304-B of Indian Penal Code, 1860 defines “Dowry Death” and it states that if the death of a woman is caused under 7 years of her marriage under normal circumstances, and if there is enough evidence to prove that woman was subjected to some kind of cruelty or harassment by her husband or any of his relatives while demanding dowry, such death would come under the category of “Dowry Death”. In addition, phosphine and phosphides have corrosive actions. Dr VP Singh. Dowry deaths is violence by the husband and his family with a motive of extortion of gifts and other demanded fr… Trial court acquitted the accused, but trial court’s order was reversed by the Bombay High Court. Dowry is paid in the form of cash and goods such as jewellery, household appliances and cars to the bridegroom or his parents by the bride’s family. But, the purpose for which it was created lost its significance over a period of time and now it has become a tradition followed in many parts of the country. Dowry deaths are a manifestation of socio-economic maladies prevailing in the society.’ It is necessary that this is addressed at different levels, instead of legal redressal level alone, to curb the menace of dowry deaths.” Cruelty and Dowry Death intertwined: section 304 is attracted when all the 5 … Death should have occurred … Antemortem and Potmortem Inuries, Medico-legal aspects of injuries. We all must have heard many cases related to the death caused to a woman for the demand for dowry. 59% of the total deaths were accidental in, Access scientific knowledge from anywhere. 1.2 Conceptual framework. The article discusses the methods to be used in medicolegal investigations of burn deaths, summarizes statistics gleaned from police records of deaths by burning, especially those of 16- to 25-year-old newly married women, criticizes the blind acceptance of dying declarations by the courts, and highlights the magnitude of these problems. Quarrel with husband/ in-laws and dowry demand by husband or his family members were two important reasons behind suicidal as well as homicidal deaths. According to Black’s Law Dictionary, term “evidence” can be defined as any species of proof, or probative matter, legally presented at the trial of an issue, by the act of the parties and through the medium of witnesses, records, documents, concrete objects, etc., for the purpose of including belief in the minds of the court or jury as to their contention. Besides, an improvement in educational cum employment potentials and overall socio-economic status of women are the prime measures to check this social scourge. Chapter 15, p 138. Evidence is such kind of proofs which can be presented in front of the court when are where needed to be presented. [5,8,9, ... Kulshrestha et al [8] had also observed in their study that 88% affected females belonged to Hindus, followed by 10.25% Muslims and 1.7% Sikhs. it includes any notice, circular, label, wrapper, or any other document including Advertisement through internet or any other media in electronic or print form and also includes any visible representation made by means of any hoarding, wall painting, signal, light, sound, smoke or gas. There is usually only a short interval between ingestion of phosphides and the appearance of systemic toxicity. As many as 22 dowry deaths occur in India every day. Research Paper on: Dowry Deaths and Dowry System in India Page | 2 LEGAL SERVICES AVAILABLE TO THE VICTIMS With the increasing number of dowry death cases in India, the Government has laid some guidelines to deal with such cases and the laws have also been amended for strengthening the legal system to protect and support the victims who come under the cases of dowry deaths or cruelty. It is for this purpose that the relevance of evidence in such cases becomes more important. To read the full-text of this research, you can request a copy directly from the authors. The wife was entitled to her dowry at her husband's death. With the weight and importance that investigations have on legal implications and convictions, there is rightful concern surrounding the quality of these medicolegal investigators and the accuracy of their rulings for cause of death, etc. If she died childless, her dowry reverted to her family, that is her father if he was alive, otherwise her brothers. A Classification of Deaths of Medico-legal Importance (A) Deaths froin Anoxic Anoxia: 1. As per point 6.1, Chapter 6 of the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conducts, Ethics & Etiquette) Regulations 2002, advertisement has been defined under Unethical Acts. In addition, phosphine and hydrogen peroxide can interact to form the highly reactive hydroxyl radical and phosphine also inhibits catalase and peroxidase; both mechanisms result in hydroxyl radical associated damage such as lipid peroxidation. • Legal responses The first day of the finale saw over 200 participants engaging in 6 co-ordinated and well researched round table discussions on various topics like the impact of growing economic and cultural fundamentalism and globalization on dowry, marriage and abuse of women; media reconstruction of violence and autonomy; government policies, legislation and alternative forms of … [1,4,5,7,8,9, This study was carried out between July 1998 and November 2000 to study the dynamics of dowry deaths in South Delhi. Different types of weapons, Dangerous weapons and their examination. Aluminium and zinc phosphides are highly effective insecticides and rodenticides and are used widely to protect grain in stores and during its transportation. About 23% cases had alleged history of dowry demands, harassment, torture and subsequent death. This is consistent with the findings of other authors. The trend in present India, with its booming economy, is now encouraging ever-higher bride prices among all socioeconomic strata. To cover a identity of a person for medico legal purpose on the basis of race, religion ,age ,sex, dactylography, odontology , DNA profiling. In some cases, it is important to distinguish accidental manner from suicidal or homicidal ones. The most vulnerable age group was 21-25 years. 92.97%. During the colonial period, it became the only legal way to get married, with the British making the practice of dowry mandatory. All these are worn out by the cruel hands of dowry-related deaths. There is conflicting evidence on the occurrence of magnesium disturbances. But, it has also been seen over a period of time that the story portrayed by the parent’s of the deceased woman, and also there are various cases where a man or his family members get punishment for the crime which they have not committed. The rising trends of dowry deaths reflected that prevailing laws dealing with dowry are inadequate hence enactment of more deterrent laws for the offender should be considered. The tradition of dowry was originated in ancient India, and it was generally provided to enable a woman to support her in crisis, and also to support her husband and children if needed. 57% of the victims died in initial three years of marriage, indicating possible maladjustment and strenuous relationship between husband and wife or that with in-laws. Murder and Culpable homicide become important to consider because in cases pertaining to the issue of “Dowry Death”, death of a woman is caused and it is very important to relate that death with these provision so as to decide whether the deceased was murdered or not. Presumptions as to abetment of Suicide by married women; dowry death; absence of consent in certain procecutions of rape. In this context, the present paper examines the trend of the mortality in the form of dowry deaths and dowry-related suicides from India. Age & its medicolegal importance 1. Allahabad topped the list with 304 cases. Explain Dowry death and its about the court procedure and duty of a medical practitioner regarding court matters. [10] , Sinha US et al. A medico legal expert should never forget: If the death scene investigation is not performed before the autopsy, that autopsy will be an imperfect autopsy. Despite the enormous impact of dowries on women's health, little information is available in public health literature. 472 cases compared to nuclear family and incidence was more in arranged marriage. While phosphine does inhibit cytochrome C oxidase in vitro, the inhibition is much less in vivo. The Indian Penal Code was also modified in 1983 to establish specific crimes of dowry-related cruelty, dowry death, and abetment of suicide. The important contributing factors responsible for a rising trend in dowry death cases include level of education in women, joint family, unemployment of husband, dependence of women on husband and in-laws, infidelity etc. We … He had no say, however, in its ultimate disposal; and legally, the dowry had to be kept separate for it was expected to support the wife and her children. Click here to hide this advertisement for 24 hours, legaljunction has not set their biography yet. In cases relating to the issue of dowry death, there can be various forms of evidences for e.g., Letter by woman to her parents explaining her plight or communicating with them by any other means, torture by the family members of the husband for dowry etc. In this paper all such variables are discussed. Indian Constitution in Article 19 protects Fundamental Right to speech and expression which includes Right to Advertisement also. Supreme reversed High Court’s order and acquitted the accused on the ground that evidence present by the counsel didn’t mention money. According to Black’s Law Dictionary, term dowry can be defined as the property which a woman brings to her husband in marriage, or the effects which the wife brings to the husband to support the expenses of marriage. Fake Encounters and Honour Killings: Rarest of Rare Crimes, Disputed term “Group” in Communal Violence Bill, 2011, The Law of Franchise and Distributor Agreements, Classification of Tax Structure in accordance with the Indian Constitution. If she had sons, they would share it equally. I’m dating you doesn’t mean you can date rape me. Husbands and his relatives were primarily responsible for killing or forcing the victim to end her life. The Indian Evidence Act 1872 1. Another layer of legal protection was provided in 2005 under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act. These two sections play a very important role while deciding the case pertaining to the issue of dowry death, along with Section 300 and 299 which are related to the issue of “Culpable Homicide” and “Murder”. Hospital, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh for autopsy during one year study period. A large number of cases are witnessed by various courts throughout the country daily, and many of them have “Dowry death” as its subject matter. Dowry death is defined in Section 304Bof the India… 2016. The associations between various social and economic forces have given shape to the phenomenon of dowry demands in India leading to dowry deaths of young girls. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required. The objects are curbing and combating the causes of Dowry’s deaths and to deal with the same with a firm hand. A total of 117 cases were studied. Majority of dowry deaths occurred during night followed by deaths in evening and mostly housewives were involved i.e. INTRA-UTERINE LIFEINTRA-UTERINE LIFE:-:- 4-8 WEEKS-----ORGANOGENESIS4-8 WEEKS-----ORGANOGENESIS 26 WEEKS-----VIABILITY26 WEEKS-----VIABILITY 40 WEEKS-----FULL TERM BIRTH40 WEEKS-----FULL TERM BIRTH These periods are of importance because inThese periods are of importance … MEDICO-LEGAL IMPORTANCE OF AGE 3. Even though dowry has been illegal in India since 1961, it is still prevalent. Illiterate, issueless Hindu housewives of lower socio-economic class were the worst affected. MUMBAI // It is supposedly illegal, but a spate of deaths linked to India’s dowry system shows the practice is not only widespread but shows little sign of abating. Acute poisoning with these compounds may be direct due to ingestion of the salts or indirect from accidental inhalation of phosphine generated during their approved use. The most common cause of death was burns followed by poisoning. The main location of incidence of dowry death was in-laws house followed by husband's house totaling 523 cases. It’s very disgraceful for a society where a woman dies for not being able to give dowry and also very shameful where dowry is still being practised. Interpretation of certain expressions present in various act become more important in these case. The association of various demographic and socio-economic factors with these events are also examined. Section 304B is a provision which is peculiar in its scope and applicability. Sinha et al. This epidemiological study conducted in Allahabad range for a period of 4 years (1995 - 1998) analyzed involvement of various parameters and their relevance to medico-legal aspect of dowry death cases. This legislation marked the inception of an evolution leading to development of a legal infrastructure which effectively monitored the exchange and facilitation of exchange of dowry. Supportive measures are all that can be offered and should be implemented as required. Some rights clearly do conflicts, and a hierarchy must be established at some point. Many young newly married females die from burn injuries, the most common reasons given in post-mortem reports therefore being that she caught a light (a) while cooking; (b) after an oil explosion in a stove; or (c) when a chimney fell on her at night. The forensic medicine expert should visit the death scene before the autopsy if it is possible. Vijay v State of Maharashtra AIR 2009 SC 1217, An Infinite Battle-The Ruchika Girhotra Case. Dowry deaths are deaths of married women who are murdered or driven to suicide by continuous harassment and torture by their husbands and in-laws over a dispute about their dowry, making the women's homes the most dangerous place for them to be. Homicidal by burning of women who are married is a major concern in India for the medical and legal authorities associated with disputes of dowry all over the country. She would like to a happy married life. Expert Opinion. The most common cause of deaths was due to burn injury followed by poisoning (specially Alluminium Phosphide). Majority of cases 454 were homicidal and the ratio between homicidal and suicidal deaths was 3.95: I. PDF | Fire was perhaps man's first double-edged sword, for throughout history, it has served as well destroyed mankind. Majority of dowry death cases were drawn from joint family i.e. Jaypee publishers. ... [6] Age wise incidences of female deaths were maximum (35%) in their 3 rd decade of life in our study as compared to both extremes of life, which is consistent with other authors. impact of this training have permeated the not -well -to-do individuals of the general public a:s well, even the individuals who encounter International Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics Special Issue 1684. Dowry death. In Vijay v State of Maharashtra AIR 2009 SC 1217, it was alleged by the counsel of the state that a ring and money was demanded by the deceased, and that she informed this to her parents through a letter but there was no mention of money in the letter. Dr VP Singh. This tragedy begins shortly after conception and continues until their death. Actual numbers are not known, but anecdotally about half of the weddings in my family and friend's circles involve dowry. Her dowry was inheritable only by her own … But the rising bride price has brought with it an increase in violence against women. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Sinha US et al, ... cases followed by hanging 16(30.77%). Since time immemorial we have seen so many offences against women, where they are tortured and one such offence is dowry death. Medical evidence in dowry death Medical evidence plays a crucial role in assisting the courts to establish the cause of deaths, especially in cases when the crime is committed secretly within the four walls of the house and is presented as a case of accidental death. 1.1. The most vulnerable age group was 18-32 years comprising of 87.87% of all recorded alleged dowry deaths. Sometimes, a woman dies naturally but a case is registered under the provision mentioned under Indian Penal Code for “Dowry Death”. Dowry deaths are found predominantly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Iran. Accidental burn was most common cause of death and most common manner of death was suicide (47.98%) followed by accident (42.07%) and homicide (9.95%). ... Burns as a major cause of death in females was also concluded by other authors in their study. A prospective cross-sectional study was carried out comprising 221 medico-legal cases of unnatural death of females within seven years of their marriage brought to the mortuary at S.R.N. The same has to be distinguished from proof and testimony. In such cases, it is often essential to determine antemortem versus postmortem burning. Death because of dowry is a very serious crime, but court are also careful while examining such cases because the punishment prescribed for dowry death is very severe and it would be highly unjustifiable to punish the person who is not involved in such crime. Death due to thermal burns is a burning topic all over the globe. The importance of Medical Evidence at present is an increasing tendency. “Where the death of a woman is caused by any burns or bodily injury or occurs otherwise than under normal circumstances within seven years of her marriage and it is shown that soon before her death she was subjected to cruelty or harassment by her husband or any relative of her husband for, or in connection with, any demand for dowry, such death shall be called “dowry death 1 ’, and such husband …