30/08/2021

The history behind India’s deadly tradition

India’s dowry system has caused an immense outrage amongst many. Even though the tradition has been illegal for more than half a century, it continues to take lives to this day. But how did it all start? Was it always like this? Or is violence only a present-day issue? 

The dowry system today states that when two people are getting married, a price has to be paid to the groom and his family. These gifts usually consist out of substantial amounts of money or properties, but they do not come without risks. Violence and murder are some of the consequences nobody talks about. 

How did this tradition start?

The dowry system in India first unfolded in the Middle Ages, where it started out as a system to support women. The idea of the dowry was simply a way to ensure the bride’s financial independence after the wedding. This is contradictory to what it means these days. During these times, the bride was to decide over her future husband. Different from now, the men were the ones going through various tests before she decided whom to marry. The abundance of riches was owned by the wife, not by her husband or any in-laws. It had nothing to do with the trading of wealth as it does now.

A turning point

So when and why did this change? The system went from being beneficial to women, to simply misogynistic. In its earliest days, nothing is found that links the dowry to any type of violence, let alone murder. That all changed when the British ruled over the country. They quickly turned it into a danger zone for women, making a dowry obligatory for legal weddings. The British were the ones who turned it into the system we know it as today. To be more specific, there were two big events that contributed to the change. 

Private property and landlords

One of these events was the ‘Permanent Settlement of Bengal, which was conducted in 1793. This created the idea of the capitalistic system of private ownership. In the old days, people simply lived on land owned by the government. Whenever people were forced to move elsewhere, due to natural disaster, they would. They would look for different land to live on, without any problems about where they could or couldn’t stay. Private land simply did not exist during these days. For that reason, fighting over property was useless. It was only after the British had created the idea of private ownership, that wars began to unravel.

The idea of landlords was created around the same time, which caused money to matter even more than it did before. Prior to this arrangement, money was only taken from civilians when there was plenty of it. Afterwards, it did not matter if there was a shortage or any financial issues, it was taken anyway. A dowry is all about money and property, the events happening caused the value of these two to sky-rocket and be of immense importance.

Women cannot own anything

The other great event that led to the big change was Britain imposing a law that stated that women were not allowed to own any property at all. 

A woman not being allowed to own anything meant that everything would quickly go to her husband. Suddenly women would be worth a lot of money. People were starting to notice this and soon all brides were seen as a trading good. Future husbands and their families wanted to gain as much materialistic wealth as they could, causing marriage to be nothing but a financial plan. 

This brought great tragedy to many families, specifically women. Not only did marriage turn insensitive, but they were also a financial liability. Meaning that men became even more wanted, more important. Which led to the inequality between men and women as we know it. With women being viewed as objects, there was no problem with violence or abuse. 

This law against women owning property kept on for years, only to be changed in 2005.

The dowry as we know it today

In today’s world, the dowry system is a corrupt and damaging system. Due to India’s rising economic status, dowries have only become more expensive. This growth has caused an immense increase in violence against women. Grooms and in-laws become extremely greedy, not being satisfied and demanding more than originally agreed. This discontent can lead to harassment, abuse, and even murder. On top of that, it all causes immense pressure on the bride and has resulted in many suicides.

“Women are worth less than money, or so it feels. A lot of women suffer from this feeling of inferiority. Misogyny isn’t a new term and can definitely be used in this case. The idea of marrying a woman being a task is outdated and needs to change.”, pleads Prof. Dr. Saartje Verbeke, expert in Indic languages, political organization, religion and culture of India. 

In India, the number of deaths as a result of a dowry has been increasing over the years. Now at its peak of 21 deaths each day. This means about 7000 women die every year under these circumstances. Although these statistics give an idea of how present the issue still is, it is important to know that these are only reported deaths. The exact amount is not known, due to a lack of knowledge. Many crimes of this matter go unnoticed and unreported. The Indian dowry system has a long history, but its present-day meaning is far from positive. Today, people are fighting for its downfall.

 

Text: Charlotte Haemels; Image: Pixabay