Open Access Research Article
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: WHY NOT A GENDER-NEUTRAL LAW?
Published Paper
Article Details
DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE: WHY NOT A GENDER-NEUTRAL LAW?
AUTHORED BY - CHAVI SOOD VERMA[1]
ASSISTANT
PROFESSOR
IILM
UNIVERSITY GURUGRAM
Abstract
Our upbringing
in a particular culture has led to the belief that men should possess qualities
of strength, courage and dominance, while women are expected to exhibit fragility
and submissiveness. Women face a range of difficulties, such as sexual assault,
domestic abuse, harassment, and so on. However, it would be unfair to ignore
the fact that men also face such atrocities. Domestic violence against males is
a serious issue and should not be ignored. The concept of 'masculinity' is
something that men are burdened with throughout their lives. Even individuals
from the LGBTQ community can be victims of such violence, and they are more
susceptible to such crimes. This paper presents a fresh and inclusive analysis
of the existing laws on domestic violence in India, adopting a gender-neutral
stance.
Keywords- domestic, violence, male victims,
LGBTQ victims, gender-neutral
Introduction
The United Nations Organization
has time and again expressed a need to promote Human rights in the world. Human
rights are the inherent rights guaranteed to every individual irrespective of
gender, race, caste, religion, etc. The world has witnessed a pre-dominance of
males in the society making it patriarchal in nature and spirit. The
Patriarchal nature of the society has given origin to the gender-based
violence, which is perpetrated by the males and the victims are always the
female members of the society. Such violence is seen not only in the public
spaces, but also in the four walls of the house of the victim herself. Violence
against women is not a new phenomenon rather has existed in the society because
of patriarchy which also results into inequality. The prevalence of violence
against women has appalling physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, and
economic repercussions on the society.
Violence against women refers to
any act of gender-based violence that causes or is likely to cause physical, sexual,
or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts,
coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or
private life. It affects women of all ages, in every society, and in every
socio-economic group. Social norms and economic reliance are the core causes of
violence against women in India. The reality of gender-based violence includes
female feoticide, domestic abuse, sexual harassment, and other acts. The
physical, emotional, and even psychic health of aggrieved women, as well as
that of their kids, is impacted by domestic violence. Although while laws have
changed and there is a rise in female engagement in public life, India still
has a long way to go before women are treated equally as citizens of their own
nation. Many women in our society endure violent treatment from their partners
while remaining silent about it. Domestic abuse sometimes results in these
women's deaths.
The article aims
to initially elucidate the distinct forms of domestic abuse and the type of
safeguards given to victims under various laws. Subsequently, it delves into
comprehending the Indian juridical system and statistics regarding domestic
violence in depth, alongside a relational assessment with the legal system and
statistics of other nations. Furthermore, it elucidates the causes for
partiality towards males, transgender individuals, and those in same- gender
relationships under the psycho-sociological perspective. Lastly, it scrutinizes
the aftermath of domestic violence on males and members of the LGBTQ community.
Ultimately, it provides recommendations on how to tackle such abuse in India.
MEANING
Section 3 of The Protection of
Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (hereinafter as the Act) defines domestic violence as any act, omission or
conduct of the Respondent that may harm, injure, or endanger the mental or
physical health, safety, life, limb, or well-being of the aggrieved person.
This includes physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, and economic abuse. Domestic
violence also covers harassment, harm, injury, or endangerment of the aggrieved
person with the intention of coercing her or any related person to meet any
unlawful demand for dowry or property.[2]
In addition to this, it also includes any act that threatens the aggrieved
person or any related person with harms mentioned in clause (a) or (b) of
Section 3 of the Act or any other harm that causes fear of such harm is
considered domestic violence.
Nonetheless,
according to Section 2(a) of the Act, the definition of an aggrieved person
only pertains to women who are in heterosexual relationships or who reside in
joint families.[3]
This definition excludes men and trans-genders as potential victims of domestic
violence. Typically, domestic violence is associated with heteronormative
couples, where women are identified as the victims and men as the perpetrators.
However, this perception is erroneous, as anyone, regardless of their gender,
can fall prey to domestic violence. It is a misguided belief that men or
individuals belonging to the LGBTQ community do not experience domestic
violence or sexual assault. The truth is that societal norms prevent them from
disclosing such issues in the society.
According to Black's Law Dictionary, "Violence means the unreasonable or unreasonable use of force, usually accompanied by fury, vehemence, or outrage, anger, physical violence committed unlawfully with intent to harm.”[4]
According to WHO, “violence is the deliberate use of physical force or Power,
Others are or are likely to be threatened against the group, community, or oneself causes death, injury, mental harm, and deprivation.[5] Household viciousness could be a behaviour in which one individual mishandle another in a household relationship which can be either by accomplice or by any family part. It can incorporate physical, financial, devout, verbal, passionate, battery, and sexual mishandle, extending from coercive shapes to conjugal assault. The most thought process behind this viciousness is to preserve control and pick up control over the casualty.
Beneath a few extraordinary legislations, domestic violence has been recognized in different shapes, such as the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, which criminalizes the giving and taking of share.[6] There's another shape of household viciousness that was wild in our past but ebbed within the final century, i.e., Sati, which suggests the burning or burying of dowager lively along with her husband's body. The Preconception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994 recognizes that domestic violence is additionally executed within the shape of constrained end of female foetuses.[7]
Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women:
Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women was embraced by a larger part of
states who were signatory of this tradition. That woman's right may be a human
right. She has too crucial rights called as human rights as she could be a
human being. The essential protest of CEDAW is to dispose of the sex-based
segregation against ladies. Essential center of the CEDAW is on the issues of
the ladies in open division but joined together country committed on the End of
Segregation Against Ladies the critical step towards the end of the viciousness
against ladies in private division too. As there is additionally infringement of
human rights of ladies every day. In 11th session
the commission submitted basic
theme of sex-based savagery is the savagery coordinated against a lady since
she could be a lady. After this conference were orchestrated on this point and
the arrangements related to the residential savagery was received by World
Conference on Human Rights. The human rights of ladies are unavoidable,
indispensably and resolute portion of the all-inclusive human rights. The stage
is given to ladies to appreciate, to ensure and to advance all the human rights
and fundamental freedoms all through their life cycle. But still there is
battle for the acknowledgment and effective implementation of the issue within
global human rights bodies.[8]
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
AGAINST WOMEN
Violence against women could be a
broad issue, with horrifying physical, sexual, emotional, mental and financial
results for girls and women.[9]
It influences women of every age, in all the societies and in every
socio-economic bunch. Violence against women alludes to any act of sexual
orientation-based violence that comes about in, or is likely to result in
physical, sexual, or mental hurt or enduring to women, counting dangers of
such acts, restraint or subjective hardship of freedom, whether happening
in open or private life. Violence against women should be caught on to envelop,
but not be restricted to the following:
a) Physical, sexual and mental
violence happening within the family, including battering, sexual mishandle of
female children in the family, dowry-related violence, conjugal assault, female
genital mutilation and other conventional hones hurtful to women, non-spousal
savagery and violence related to
misuse;
b) Physical, sexual and mental
violence happening inside Violence against women in India is an issue
established in societal standards and financial reliance. Female feticide,
domestic violence, sexual badgering and other shapes of gender-based violence
constitute the reality of most girls' and women's lives in India. Wife
battering influences the physical and mental prosperity of the manhandled women
and indeed that of their children. In spite of the fact that female
cooperation in open life is expanding and laws have been corrected, India still
includes a long way to go to form Indian women equal citizens in their possess
nation. In our society, numerous women are brutally treated by
their intimate partners whereas they suffer in silence. In a few cases,
domestic violence leads to the death of these women.
c) Physical, sexual and mental
violence perpetrated or condoned by the State, wherever it happens. This can be
imperative so that approach creators have a full understanding of the
issues included in violence against women otherwise, the laws
and approaches that are formulated are likely to be incapable.[10]
TYPES OF DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE
There can be different types of
domestic violence. They can be on the basis of demographics of the victim and
the perpetrator. Such types of abuse have been enumerated below:
Physical
Abuse
Physical Abuse is any deliberateness act of savagery, causing damage
or injury to another individual by way of real
contact. This sort of viciousness is the foremost
commonly identifiable household viciousness. By and large,
it includes the physical constrain against the casualty, which may result in any harm
like a punch, kick, wounding, shooting,
choking, slapping, constraining to utilize drugs, etc.[11]
Emotional Abuse
Emotional abuse is act of counting segregation,
verbal ambush, mortification, terrorizing,
infantilization, or any other mending,
which may debilitate the feel of recognizable
proof, self-respect, and self-worth of anybody. This viciousness
is dubious to decide and completely get
a handle on for numerous people, and primarily, it appears in
an undesirable relationship. [12]
Sexual
Abuse
Sexual abuse is additionally a shape of household savagery. It includes not as it were sexual attack
and assault conjointly badgering, such as driving
for touching and appearing private body
parts and other mortifying behaviors. It moreover alludes to attack or any undesirable sexual action. This may comprise of forced sexual contact, constraining ladies to carry
out sexual acts that will cause torment or mortification,
driving them to have sex with others or
causing damage to their sexual organs. [13]
Verbal
Abuse
Verbal abuse is characterized as a negative explanation or words told to any individual or almost the
person who can feel the individual feel disgrace or mortification
before others. It may incorporate pointless giggling on any individual,
yelling, put-downs, name-calling, and disgusting dialect, making
fun of any person's supposition or sees, utilizing mockery, or to form fun
of her devout ethical quality or morals.
Verbal abuse may be the result of physical violence[14].
Economic
Abuse
Economic abuse could be a shape
of abuse where hint accomplice controls get to or utilize cash from her wish.
It decreases the victim's capacity to win and bolster her family. In this sort
of abuse, the culprit powers the casualty to depend on him monetarily. Here,
the culprit takes full control over all the back investing and choice making
around cash. Monetary abuse may happen in other shapes, too such as a spouse
anticipating his spouse from getting an instruction or any work interior or
exterior the domestic[15].
Effect on the victim and the
family
1. Physical
Impact - Bruises, broken bones, head wounds, slashes and internal bleeding are a few of
the intense impacts of a domestic violence occurrence that
require therapeutic consideration and hospitalization[16].A few unremitting wellbeing conditions
that have been connected to casualties of domestic
violence are arthritis, irritable bowel syndrome[17].Victims
who are pregnant amid a domestic violence
relationship encounter more prominent hazard of unsuccessful
labor, pre-term labor and damage to or
passing of embryo
.
2. Psychological
Effect – Among victims who are still living with
their culprits, tall sums of stress, fear
and uneasiness are commonly detailed. Misery is additionally
common, as victims are made to feel blameworthy for
'provoking' the manhandle and are as
often as possible subjected to intense criticism .it
is detailed that 60% of the casualties meet
the diagnostic criteria for depression,
either amid or after end of
the relationship, and have a significantly expanded risk
of suicidality[18].
3. Effect on Children: There is a growing recognition that a
child who is exposed to domestic abuse during his childhood will suffer in his
development and psychological well-being[19].
Domestic abuse can cause emotional and behavioral difficulties such as increased
aggressiveness, anxiety, and changes in how a kid interacts with peers, family,
and authorities. Problems with attitude and cognition might emerge in schools,
as can a lack of abilities such as problem-solving. A link has been discovered
between childhood abuse and neglect and adult perpetration of domestic violence
and sexual abuse (Sadler, 1994). In certain circumstances, the abuser would
purposefully abuse the mother in front of the child in order to create a ripple
effect, hunting two birds with one stone.
INTERNATIONAL
FRAMEWORK
Nations just
like the United
States of America and Britain have laws ensuring both
men and ladies against domestic violence. Indeed, the nation from
which India's structure was essentially inferred from
has included provisions for security of
both the sexual orientations, it's fundamental for
India to incorporate such provisions as
well. A few nations have moreover made
their domestic violence laws totally sexual
orientation unbiased, in
this manner managing security to each person independent of
their gender, i.e., not fair guys or
females, but anybody counting
trans-genders or individuals
living in same-sex connections. In
any case, there are still nations like
Kenya, Egypt, Pakistan, Algeria, etc. that do not indeed have
laws for domestic violence (both
male and female). The insights given by
official sources in other nations shows the intense predominance of domestic violence
against men and individuals who recognize as
LGBTQ. The lawful system and insights of detailed domestic violence or hint accomplice violence in
other nations are as follows:-
a)
Domestic violence in the United Kingdom and
Wales is defined as "any incident, or pattern of incidents, of
controlling, coercive, threatening behaviour, violence, or abuse between those
aged 16 or over who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members
regardless of gender or sexuality." This definition is gender-neutral and
includes all adults above the age of 16, as well as identifying perpetrators as
family members or intimate partners. According to one survey, about 2.4 million
adults aged 16 to 74 years suffered domestic abuse in the 2018-2019 school
year. There were 1.6 million female
victims and 786,000 male victims. As a result, men constituted 32.75% of
domestic abuse victims[20].
b)
United States of America- The abuse Against
Women Act is federal legislation that protects women, men, and members of the
LGBTQ community against domestic abuse. One out of every four females and three
out of every ten males have experienced contact sexual assault, physical abuse,
or stalking by an intimate partner at some point in their lives and reported at
least one consequence of such abuse (such as being concerned for their safety).
Approximately 48.4% of females and 48.8% of males have experienced mental abuse
from an intimate partner at some point in their lives[21].
c)
Canada-Domestic abuse is protected under
Canadian law, regardless of the individual's gender. In 2018, there were 20,600
males and 78,852 women who were victims of intimate partner abuse. This means
that men made up 20.71% of the reported cases of intimate relationship
violence. However, 46.9% of males reported being victims of intimate and
non-intimate partner violence. According to a Canadian Labour Congress survey,
transgender people are more likely than cisgender people to be victims of domestic
or intimate relationship violence[22].
d)
Australia – Domestic abuse legislation in
Australia is inclusive of all people, regardless of gender. The government has
set up helplines specifically for women and LGBTQ individuals. Officers are
properly trained to deal with LGBTQ people. According to a 2018 survey, 1 in 6
women and 1 in 16 men in Australia over the age of 15 are victims of intimate
partner abuse. An Australian Research Centre for Health and Sexuality (ARCHS)
survey of 5476 LGBTQ people discovered significant levels of intimate partner
abuse[23].
LEGAL FRAMEWORK IN
INDIA
The first issue is that even
Indian law does not recognize domestic violence against men or the LGBTQ
community. Under the Act, only women are protected. In India, the Act criminalizes
physical, emotional, economic, sexual, and verbal violence against women. It
does not, however, protect males, transgender people, or victims of same-sex
partnerships. Because the Act is broader in scope than the Indian Penal Code,
it provides better protection to victims of domestic violence, and thus there
is a need for an all-encompassing legal framework.
A woman can file a domestic
violence lawsuit not only against her husband, but also against any family
member with whom she shares a household, according to Section 2(f) of the Act[24].
This includes her own parents, siblings, and relatives of her spouse who share
the same domestic household. Even if the notion that wives do not subject their
husbands to domestic abuse is accepted, men face violence from other family
members, particularly dads and elder brothers.
Furthermore, Section 498A of the
Indian Penal Code, which deals with the law of Cruelty, states that
"whoever, being the husband or relative of the husband of a woman,
subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment[25]."
This plainly states that only women are legally protected from domestic
violence. So, even if a man attempts to overcome societal stigma by approaching
the law, his options for legal recourse are severely limited. His manliness
Even the cops question him, mocking him for not being "man enough."
Even members of the LGBTQ community cannot go to court if they are victims of
domestic violence.
Furthermore, Indian laws do not
recognize that men or transgender people can be raped. The Indian Penal Code
makes no provision to protect them from rape by men or women. A survey of 222
men was undertaken, and 16.1% of those polled reported being persuaded or
forced into sex as an adult by a woman. Everyone has the right to life and
personal liberty under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution[26].
This incorporates the proper to be free from violence and right to dignity.
Since these rights are accessible to everybody, indeed men and individuals having a place to the LGBTQ community ought to be ensured from brutalities like domestic violence and assault. In an attempt to strive towards gender equality, the Hon’ble Supreme Court
of India has passed a ruling wherein the words “adult male” have been removed
from the Section 2(q) of the Domestic Violence Act, 2005[27]. This
broadens the Act within
the view that a
complain can too be recorded against a
female partner, i.e., a lady can record a complaint
against both male and female family individuals. But since Section 2(q) of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 bargains with the
respondent, indeed this administering does not say
anything about men being the victims of such
violence[28]. Within the current situation with respect to subjects like
domestic violence against men, assault of men and infidelity committed by women, indeed the Supreme Court is revaluating the arrangements of these laws
as archaic and one-sided. These laws
are one-sided and as it were seeing women as victims. There's a have to be amend these laws to
oblige both men and women. In a
judgement by Justice D Y Chandrachur,
the Hon'ble Supreme Court held
that the laws with respect
to infidelity are biased towards guys and consequently there's a need to amend these
laws. So also, the laws of
domestic violence are too partial as they as it were recognizing
women as victims. There's still a lot to
be done to form the Indian
laws gender impartial. In reality, there are a couple of nations which have as of now obliged provisions for domestic violence for both the genders in their constitution[29].
EFFECTS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AGAINST
MEN
Men are expected to be
‘masculine' by society. This meaning brings specific attributes associated with
men, such as strength, both physically and emotionally. So, if they talk about
being victims of domestic violence, society may look down on them and subject
them to even more humiliation. As a result, they remain silent about the matter
and become marginalized in society.
Furthermore, men do not report
domestic violence abuses due to pride. They are indoctrinated from infancy that
"men don't cry." This programming leads individuals to assume that if
they express their difficulties, they will be mocked and humiliated in society.
The issue is not limited to the People who engage in these activities, but also
those around them, who are not sensitive enough to understand that men are also
human and can experience emotional problems.
Another reason they remain silent
on the subject is that they are sometimes blackmailed with being falsely
accused of dowry harassment or cruelty if they do not comply with the woman's
requirements. Even if they file for divorce, they will be persecuted and
accused of making false accusations. In fact, 10 percent of the complaints
brought under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code[30],
i.e., the dowry harassment legislation, were found to be fake in 2013. The man
cannot even protect himself as a minimum legal precaution. He has a number of
options. He suffers in quiet since his manhood is called into question if he
speaks up. In Arnesh Kumar vs. State of Bihar, the Supreme Court acknowledged
that unhappy wives are using Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code to harass
their husbands and family[31].
The simple reason why many
countries do not have laws protecting males from domestic violence is because
it is often held that men are physically stronger than women and hence only,
they can inflict violence. Men may be physically stronger than women on
average, but this is not always true on an individual level. Furthermore, as
previously stated, Domestic violence is not only physical, but also verbal,
emotional, financial, and sexual. As a result, physical strength is not the
only determinant determining who becomes a victim of domestic violence. Indeed,
the lack of domestic violence laws for men puts them at a high risk of becoming
victims of such crimes because there is no legal deterrent to such crimes.
Furthermore, it is difficult for
men to accept that they are experiencing a problem. Years of brainwashing in
patriarchal culture have led them to assume that women cannot mistreat them or
harass them since they are the 'supposedly' weaker gender. If he accepts the
ordeal, it implies that he does not conform to traditional ‘masculinity'
standards and that there is something wrong with him. They remain in denial,
believing that their partner's attitude towards them will alter over time.
Although the 'women are
physically weaker than men' argument implies that a woman cannot physically
assault a man, it does not follow that a man can only be assaulted by his wife.
Women may assault males through their brothers, fathers, or other relatives. As
a result, a man needs to be protected from his partners' relatives as well.
When physical abuse and threats against men by their spouse's family members are
taken into account, In India, an estimated 3 crore males are victims of
domestic abuse. A man filed a domestic violence lawsuit against his wife and
her brothers, who allegedly robbed and abused him, but the Supreme Court ruled
that the case was not viable under the Act. Domestic violence is not only
committed by the wife's immediate family; a person can also be the victim of
violence from their own parents, siblings, or other individuals living in the
same household. Male sons in Indian families are expected to assist their
parents and live in a shared household. This is in contrast to Western
practice, when children often leave their parents' home after reaching the age
of 18 years. Given the
structure of Indian joint families, the eldest male member or the ‘karta’ has
an unequivocal dominating position. There is a need to protect the other
members of the family, regardless of gender, from the tyranny of the 'karta' of
the family. Because sons do not separate from their parents even after
attaining majority, some of them must endure the dominating character of the
'karta,' which sometimes includes physical as well as mental harassment on the
individual. The society is heavily focused on feminism, yet feminism is now
occasionally perceived negatively. Though feminism is about achieving equality
of rights, some people try to suppress men's rights in order to gain rights for
women. This has a bad effect on a man's life. The massive uprising against the
patriarchal framework of society has largely disregarded the connected issues
that men face. Because of this thinking, males do not have a safe area to
discuss their difficulties. In an attempt to break free from patriarchal
culture, many people have shaped their brains to believe that any crime
committed is the responsibility of a man, without even considering that he
could be innocent. This results in emotional abuse because he is being blamed
for something that may or may not be his fault[32].
According to Kumar, such occurrences
of domestic violence may increase in the near future as power dynamics in
various gender roles shift. Men are growing more financially dependent on women
as more women enter the labour sector. In fact, the tendency of stay-at-home
spouses is growing in India, increasing men's economic reliance on their
partners. As a result, many guys find it difficult to quit violent
relationships. One of the reasons why men tolerate abusive behaviour at home is
the conviction and expectation that things will change, as well as the fear of
losing social position.
However, some uninformed people
argue that by emphasizing gender violence against men, the importance of gender
violence against women is diminished. That is merely a political agenda to
reduce gender violence against women. Such comments perpetuate the stereotype
that domestic violence only affects women. According to data from the Home
Office statistical bulletins and the British Crime Survey, "men accounted
for approximately 40% of domestic violence victims each year between 2004-05
and 2008-09, the most recent year for which figures are available." Men
accounted up 43.4% of all individuals who had experienced partner abuse in the
preceding year in 2006-07, rising to 45.5% in 2007-08 but falling to 37.7% in
2008-09."47Gender violence is abundantly demonstrated by data[33].
Gender violence against men is
certainly a major and prevalent issue, according to the research. The fact that
gender violence exists against men does not imply that it does not exist
against women.
EFFECTS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AGAINST
LGBTQ COMMUNITY
Individuals having
a place to the LGBTQ community have existed all
through history. Be that as it may, they
have as it were as of late been
recognized as people requiring rise
to rights beneath the Indian laws after
the decriminalization of homosexuality in 2018[34]. Indeed, in
spite of the fact that the law presently
recognizes them as break even with individuals, the
society is still biased towards them.
Homophobia and transphobia are exceedingly predominant in
India. The Indian society recognizes gay
people, trans-genders and queers as against the 'culture' of the nation. Not as it
were men and ladies, but individuals having
a place to the LGBTQ gather can too be
the casualties of domestic violence[35].
In
any case, the current law in India gives assurance to as it
were females as casualties of residential savagery. Particularly after
the decriminalization of same-sex connections in
India after the halfway struck down of Area 377
of the Indian Corrective Code, there's
a got to secure such people in a residential
relationship. Due to the negative stigmatization of the society towards the
LGBTQ community, these people are more vulnerable and
thus, more likely to be the casualties of domestic
violence[36].
The viciousness that
LGBTQ community endures in India is overpowering. It
is diverse from the sort of household viciousness endured by
their male and female partners who distinguish as heteros. Viciousness
against LGBTQ community incorporates constrained marriage and discipline by
family individuals for practicing sexual choice.
Sorts of discipline comprises of detainment at domestic,
family removal, refusal of financial and essential assets, constrained mental
treatment, and forced termination of education. A few
families too subject individuals having
a place to the LGBTQ community to different devout traditions and hones in arrange to
'cure' their homosexuality. Such treatments are very
common in India, and can be quite tormenting for the individuals who experience
through them. An individual who distinguished as strange was
subject to one such treatment which included
“hallucinogenic drugs, hormone infusions, and ceaseless presentation to
porn.”[37]
CONSEQUENCES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
As the
society is changing, the battle for segregation
against women has picked up a part of significance. But within
the prepare, men who go through comparable issues have
been neglected. Profound
wounds, deadly wounds,
physical incapacity among other
things can be a result of such mishandle. It
not as it were influencing the person
physically but moreover rationally. It
might indeed lead to different
mental-health clutters like sadness, push, anxiety disorders, etc.
Some of the time, it too leads
to suicide. It makes the man feel powerless and
the shame confines him
from inquiring for any proficient offer
assistance, or any kind of offer assistance for
that matter. In reality, a man who drawn
closer the police charging that
his spouse attacked him,
he was derided by the police and was debilitated that
they will call his spouse to inquire her
to record a case against him. The man kicked
the bucket as a result of suicide thereafter. Not fair
sexual frustration, but dissatisfaction in common which
antagonistically influences his
life to an extraordinary degree. Post
conjugal assault by spouses is
additionally one of the shapes of residential
violence that a man needs to go through.61 Besides, men
are called boneheads, feeble, defeatists, powerless and
other disdainful terms which have a greatly
negative impact on the psycho-social prosperity of
these men. Such terms can indeed have an antagonistic impact on
his sexual prosperity counting issues like
erectile brokenness and moo
sexual charisma. It too influences his
behaviour and mental wellbeing in a harmful way. It mutilates a
person's sense of self- worth and his certainty. All
the over results are similarly pertinent to
the individuals having a place to
the LGBTQ community. The LGBTQ community in common faces
the brunt of separation, police brutality and
societal separation. Domestic violence fair includes to
that list. It makes such people feel risky in
their claim homes. The practices that
claim to 'cure' homosexuality' have a insane impact on
the mental wellbeing and the physical wellbeing of
these people. Such hones tend
to dehumanize these individuals. A bisexual woman in
Kerala purportedly committed suicide as she was
subject to change treatments by
her guardians. She was too
subjected to savagery by her family when she denied
aiming to such 'de-addiction' centres.
CONCLUSION
As a
society endeavouring towards correspondence, we require all
sides to be break even with. By talking almost uniformity, we
can't as it were battle for
women's rights, we need to fight for rights of
men and LGBTQ as well. We will battle for
domestic viciousness against men by shaping
committees, by making legitimate arrangement for
their assurance within the
Indian statutes. There's a major transformation
that we have to be go through with regard to
our mindsets with respect to our ideas almost
'masculinity'. There's a require for
systemic alter within the
society which helps us see individuals past their
sex parts within
the society. On the individual
level, we have to be spread mindfulness regarding
this issue. The law does not deliver assurance to
men and LBTQ community against a few
issues and thus we got to
sensitize individuals towards issues that influence them.
It isn't as in case domestic violence
against women does not exist but or
maybe, we have to be realized that it
exists against all people. We ought
to give a secure space
for everybody to address these issues. There's
a need to halt
stereotyping as to what is the proper and legitimate way
for individuals to act in a society.
[1] Assistant
Professor, IILM Law School, ILLM University, Gurugram.
[2] Section 3 PWDVA
[3] Section 2 PWDVA
[4] Black's Law Dictionary,
[5] WHO
[7] The Preconception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex
Selection) Act, 1994
[8] Common
Australian Residential and Family Viciousness Clearing House Theme paper: Human
Rights and Domestic Violence Recommendation 19
[9] Gill,
A. and Rehman, G. (2004) Empowerment through activism: responding to domestic
violence in the South Asian Community in London, Gender and Development, Volume
12, No.1,May 2004, Oxfam Journal, Pp 75-82.
[10] An ounce
of prevention: The life stories and perceptions of men who sexually offended
against
children. (Unpublished
thesis) Wilfrid Laurier University. | 16. UNICEF. 2000.
[11] Domestic
Violence Against Women and Girls. UNICEF Innocent Digest. 6: 1-29.
[12] Barnett,
(2001). Why battered women do not leave: External inhibiting factors social support
and internal inhibiting factors. Trauma, Violence and
Abuse. 2(1), Pp3-35.
[13] Centre
for Women's Studies & Development the Research Institute. 2005
[14] The
Protection from Domestic Violence Bill. Government Bill. Bill No. 133 of 2001
[15] MATTHEW J. BREIDING ET AL.,
INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE SURVEILLANCE: UNIFORM DEFINITIONS AND RECOMMENDED
DATA ELEMENTS 11, (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center
for Injury Prevention and Control Atlanta, Georgia, Version 2.0, 2015),
https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/ipv/intimatepartnerviolence.pdf.
[16] (Jones, 1997).
[17] (Berrios,1991)
[18] (Barnett,2001)
[19] (Dodd, 2009)
[20] Meghan Elkin, Domestic abuse in
England and Wales overview: November 2019, OFFICE FOR NATIONAL STATISTICS
(Nov. 25, 2019),
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/domesticabuseinenglandandwalesoverview/november2019.
[21] M.J. Breiding et al., Intimate
Partner Violence in the United States – 2010, NATIONAL CENTER FOR INJURY
PREVENTION AND CONTROL CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION ATLANTA,
GEORGIA (2014),
https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/cdc_nisvs_ipv_report_2013_v17_single_a.pdf.
[22] Canadian Labour Congress, Can
Work Be Safe When Home Isn’t? Initial Findings of a
Pan-Canadian Survey on Domestic Violence and the
Workplace,
UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO 12, (2014).
[23] Marian Pitts et al., Private
lives: A report on the health and wellbeing of GLBTI Australians,
AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH CENTRE IN SEX, HEALTH & SOCIETY (2006).
[24] The Protection of Women from
Domestic Violence Act, Act no. 43 of 2005, § 2(f).
[25] Indian Penal Code, Act no. 45 of
1860, § 498A.
[26] Jai Vipra, A Case for
Gender-Neutral Rape Laws in India, 3 RESEARCHING REALITY INTERNSHIP (2013),
https://ccsinternship.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/286_case-for-gender-neutral-rape-laws-in-india_jaai-vipra.pdf.
[27] Hiral P. Harsora v. Kusum
Narottamdas Harsora, (2016) 10 SCC 165.
[28] The Protection of Women from
Domestic Violence Act, Act no. 43 of 2005, § 2(q).
[29] Joseph Shine v. Union of India,
(2019) 3 SCC 39.
[30] Indian Penal Code, Act no. 45 of
1860, § 498A.
[31] Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar,
(2014) 8 SCC 273.
[32] Virag R. Dhulia, Domestic
violence against men: High time government addressed the problem, NEWS18
(June 11, 2015),
https://www.news18.com/news/india/domestic-violence-against-men-high-time-government-addressed-the-problem-1004785.html.
[33] Ashish Tripathi, HC orders on
domestic violence set aside, DECCAN HERALD (July 24, 2018),
https://www.deccanherald.com/city/sc-sets-aside-hc-s-orders-683164.html.
[34] Anant Kumar, Domestic Violence
against Men in India: A Perspective, 22 JOURNAL OF HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN THE
SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT 290, 290 (2012).
[35] Dania Bardavid, Marissa
Chiarolanzio & Allison Strittmater, Domestic Violence, 17 GEO. J.
GENDER & L. 211 (2016).
[36] Navtej Singh Johar and Ors. vs.
Union of India and Ors., (2018) 10 SCC 1.
[37] Violence on the Basis of Sexual
Orientation, Gender Identity and Gender Expression Against Non-Heteronormative
Women in Asia, OUTRIGHT ACTION INTERNATIONAL (Feb. 26, 2010),
https://outrightinternational.org/content/violence-against-lbt-people-asia.
Article Information
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: WHY NOT A GENDER-NEUTRAL LAW?
Authors: CHAVI SOOD VERMA
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2023/05/03
- Volume 2
- Issue 7
About Journal
International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis
- Abbreviation IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Access Open Access
- License CC 4.0
All research articles published in International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis are open access and available to read, download and share, subject to proper citation of the original work.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis.