The document discusses the legal position and status of women in ancient, medieval, and British India. It provides details on women's rights and roles during these periods. In ancient and Vedic times, women had a relatively high status and equal rights. However, during the medieval period practices like sati, child marriage, and slavery negatively impacted women. Under British rule, social reformers and the British worked to abolish practices like sati and infanticide, and raise the minimum age for marriage. However, patriarchal attitudes persisted and full equality was not achieved even after independence.

1. COURSE LL.B.
SUBJECT- LAW RELATING TO WOMEN AND CHILD
NOTES BY-MR. DINESH KUMAR
q-1) Write an essay on legal position of women in ancient and medieval india?
Status of Women In Ancient And Medieval India
In ancient India, women occupied a very important position, In fact, a superior position, to men.
“Sakthi” a feminine term means “power” and “strength”. All male power comes from the
feminine. Literary evidence suggests that kings and towns were destroyed because the rulers
troubled a single woman.
In Vedic times women and men were equal in many aspects. Women participated in the public
sacrifices alongside men. One script mentions a female rishi Visvara. Some Vedic hymns, are
attributed to women such as Apala, the daughter of Atri, Ghosa, the daughter of Kaksivant or
Indrani, the wife of Indra. Hindu religion has been occasionally criticized as encouraging
inequality between men and women, towards the detriment of Hindu women. This presumption
is inaccurate. Hindu women enjoyed rights of property from the Vedic Age, took a share in
social and religious rites, and were sometimes distinguished by their learning. There was no
seclusion of women in India in ancient times.
Women were made eligible for admission to what was known as the Bhikshuni-Sangha, the
Order of Nuns, which opened to them avenues of culture and social service and ample
opportunities for public life.
Women must be honored and adorned by their father, brothers, husbands, and brother-in-law
who desire great good fortune. Where women, verily are honored, there the gods rejoice;
where, however, they are not honored, there all sacred rites prove fruitless. Where the female
relations live in grief, that family soon perishes completely; where, however, they do not suffer
from any grievance that family always prospers.
The status of women in any civilization shows the stage of evolution at which, the civilization
has arrived. The term ‘status’ includes not only personal and proprietary rights but also duties,
liabilities and disabilities. In the case of a Indian woman, it means her personal rights,
proprietary rights, her duties, liabilities and disabilities vis-a-vis the society and her family
members.
With regard to the status of women in Indian society at large, no nation has held their women in
higher esteem than the Hindus. Perhaps, no other literature has presented a more admirable type
of woman character than Sita, Maitriya, Gargi. The Indian civilization has produced great
women ranging from Braham vadinis (lady Rishl) to states woman, from ideal wife to warrior
queen. It dates back to thousands of years. Hindu mythology witnesses that the status of Hindu
woman during the vedic period was honourable & respectable.

2. Now that we are no more under aggression or invasion, we should allow the women community
to regain their power, fame and name. It is we, who made Indira Gandhi, a woman as the prime
Minister. It is we who placed the Mother before the Father in priority for reverence? Matr devo
bhava was the first Upanishad exhortation to the young. Hinduism is the only religion whose
symbolism places the Feminine on a par with the Masculine in the profound concept of Siva-
Sakthi culminating in the image of Ardharnari-Isvara. We have honored our country as our
Motherland “Bharat Mata” and our nationalism has grown up from the seed Mantra “Vande
Mataram”.
To analyze the impact of Islam on the status of women we have to look at the immediate pre-
Islam Meccan society. It was tribal but had an active mercantile class The prophet’s first wife
was a businesswoman; the prophet had actually been her employee. The first Umayyad ruler’s
(Muaviya) mother Hinda actually controlled her clan and incited them to fight against Muslims.
Women used to openly propose to men. Infact when the prophet accompanied by his uncle, was
going to visit his future wife Bibi Khatija to propose to her, a woman stopped him on the way
and offered him a hundred camels if he would marry her. “From affection springs grief, From
affection springs fear, For one who is wholly free from affection, There is no grief, much less
fear.”
One would expect that in medieval times women were almost like domesticated pets caged in
the house, considering all the equality and libertarian movements the mankind has gone though.
Lawmaker Manu’s oft-quoted statement that women are not worthy of freedom strengthens this
expectation. However, the inscriptions, literary sources and sculptures of the period give an
astonishingly different picture of status of women in South India in medieval times. It is evident
from an inscripture of 1187 A.D. that the Jain nuns enjoyed the same amount of freedom as
their male counterparts. There were female trustees, priestesses, philanthropists, musicians and
scholars.
Institution Of Marriage
Marriage was compulsory for all the girls except for those opted for asceticism. Brahman girls
were married between ages 8 and 10 from sixth or century onwards up to the modern times.
Polygamy was permitted to all who could afford and it was especially popular among
Kshatriaysa for political reasons. According to Mansasollsa, the king should marry a Kshatria
girl of noble birth for a chief queen though he is permitted to have Vaisya or Sudra wives for
pleasure.
Sati or Sahagamana
Sati was prevalent among certain classes of women, who either took the vow or deemed it a
great honor to die on the funeral pyres of their husbands. Ibn Batuta observed that Sati was
considered praiseworthy by the Hindus, without however being obligatory. The Agni Purana
declares that the woman who commits sahagamana goes to heaven and Medhatiti pronounced
that Sati was like suicide and was against the Shastras. In an age of such divergent views,
women of the Deccan followed a middle path. They were not coerced, although several wives
committed Sati. The majority of the widows did not undergo Sati. (see: Love Duty or Sacrifice)

3. Widows
Alberuni writes that Indian women preferred self immolation by Sati to the suffering of life of a
widow. Ibn Batuta also felt that the plight of widows was miserable. A widow was considered
an inauspicious person and was prohibited from wearing colorful clothes, ornaments, decorate
hair, as is seen from descriptions in literature.
A few women of the time who despised their husbands, attracted other men by wanton
behaviors. A sculpture in Bhatkal depicts a case of a woman’s infidelity. A husband catches the
paramour of his wife red-handed and is about to punish him.
Position of women before independence
The Conflict of Women in 20th Century India Throughout recorded history, women the world
over have been held to different standards than men. They have been consistently oppressed in
nearly all aspects of life, from political to personal, pulic to private. In the 20th century, great
strides have been taken to end this oppression and level the playing field.
To understand the position women found themselves in at the dawn of the 20th century, one
must have a general understanding of the numerous historical women’s conflicts unique to the
Subcontinent. It took the overwhelming success of Gandhi’s nonviolent revolution to unite
women politically and create the an atmosphere whereby women, empowered by the times,
could take a stand for their equality.
q-2) Special constitutional provisions related to women in the light of fundamental rights
and dpsp?
The principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble,
Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. The Constitution not only
grants equality to women, but also empowers the State to adopt measures of positive
discrimination in favour of women. Within the framework of a democratic polity, our laws,
development policies, Plans and programmes have aimed at women’s advancement in different
spheres. India has also ratified various international conventions and human rights instruments
committing to secure equal rights of women. Key among them is the ratification of the
Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in
1993.
Constitutional Provisions
The Constitution of India not only grants equality to women but also empowers the State to
adopt measures of positive discrimination in favour of women for neutralizing the cumulative
socio economic, education and political disadvantages faced by them. Fundamental Rights,
among others, ensure equality before the law and equal protection of law; prohibits
discrimination against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, and
guarantee equality of opportunity to all citizens in matters relating to employment. Articles 14,
15, 15(3), 16, 39(a), 39(b), 39(c) and 42 of the Constitution are of specific importance in this
regard.

4. Constitutional Privileges
(i) Equality before law for women (Article 14)
(ii) The State not to discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race,
caste, sex, place of birth or any of them (Article 15 (i))
(iii) The State to make any special provision in favour of women and children (Article
15 (3))
(iv) Equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or
appointment to any office under the State (Article 16)
(v) The State to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally the
right to an adequate means of livelihood (Article 39(a)); and equal pay for equal work
for both men and women (Article 39(d))
(vi) To promote justice, on a basis of equal opportunity and to provide free legal aid
by suitable legislation or scheme or in any other way to ensure that opportunities for
securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other
disabilities (Article 39 A)
(vii) The State to make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and
for maternity relief (Article 42)
(viii) The State to promote with special care the educational and economic interests of
the weaker sections of the people and to protect them from social injustice and all
forms of exploitation (Article 46)
(ix) The State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people
(Article 47)
(x) To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the
people of India and to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women (Article
51(A) (e))
(xi) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women
belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of
seats to be filled by direct election in every Panchayat to be reserved for women and
such seats to be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Panchayat (Article
243 D(3))
(xii) Not less than one- third of the total number of offices of Chairpersons in the
Panchayats at each level to be reserved for women (Article 243 D (4))
(ix) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women

5. belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of
seats to be filled by direct election in every Municipality to be reserved for women
and such seats to be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Municipality
(Article 243 T (3))
(x) Reservation of offices of Chairpersons in Municipalities for the Scheduled Castes,
the Scheduled Tribes and women in such manner as the legislature of a State may by
law provide (Article 243 T (4))
q-3) Explain the legal position of women in british india?
Status of Women in India During the British Period!
Sati, infanticide, slavery, child marriage, prohibition of widow remarriage and lack of women’s
rights were some of the social problems which attracted the attention of the British and social
reformers. In the beginning of the nineteenth century, the practice of sati was confined to
Hooghly, Nadia and Burdwan districts of Bengal, Ghazipur of Uttar Pradesh and Shahabad of
Bihar. It was also found in other parts of India, but only as a rare phenomenon.
In southern India, it was practised in Ganjam, Masulipatnam and Tanjore districts. In Rajasthan,
Punjab and Kashmir, the practice was confined mainly to women of high castes. In Delhi,
Charles Metcalfe stopped the practice. Aligarh and Agra seldom had occurrences of sati.
In Bengal alone three-fourths of the total occurrences of sati occurred in British India. It
occurred among all castes, but it was more among the Brahmanas and Rajputs. Among the
princely families, the sense of pride and heroism elevated the sati into a noble act. But, on the
whole, the rite was practised by women whose husbands belonged to the middle and lower
middle classes.
The following factors could be attributed to the practice of sati:

6. (1) The position of women in the Hindu system,
(2) The institution of polygamy, especially among the kulin Brahmanas,
(3) The enforced widowhood and austerity,
(4) Social convention,
(5) The sense of salvation attached to the rite, and
(6) Antiquity and adoration of the practice.
The British had shown interest in the abolition of sati in 1813. The persuasive propaganda
techniques failed to prevent the occurrence of the practice. The police also did not prove
effective. Raja Ram Mohan Roy took it upon himself to eradicate this social evil.
He announced that the rite of sati was not a part of the Shastras. It was not an integral part of
the Hindu religion. A number of religious leaders opposed Ram Mohan Roy’s crusade against
sati. Through the cooperation of the princes, it was virtually stopped in the princely states. But
it was not made an illegal act for a long time.
Even today, occurrences of sati are reported from various parts of the country. And in most of
the cases, the police have either reached late or remained ineffective. In Jhunjhunu town of
Rajasthan, a huge temple of sati – known as Rani Sati Mandir – is a place of worship by all
castes and communities. Nearly, two decades ago, in Sikar district of Rajasthan, a young Rajput

7. woman committed self-emolation. This particular sati occurrence invited protests from all over
the state and other parts of India.
Female infanticide was found mainly among the Rajputs of Benaras, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh
and Rajasthan and in parts of Punjab and Sind and among some Sikhs. The institution of female
infanticide arose due to (1) the deplorable position of women in Hindu society, (2) the dowry
system, (3) hypergamy, and (4) the sense of honour and pride. Marriage of a female is
considered compulsory. In 1779, infanticide was declared to be murder by the Bengal
Regulation XXI. In 1804, this was extended to other parts of India. However, the practice
continued in secret till recently, particularly among the Rajput’s in Rajasthan. Dowry is its main
cause.
Child marriage is prevalent even today among the rural people, and among the urban illiterate
and poor. The institution of child marriage is also the result of hypergamy, dowry, and notion of
virginity and chastity. It has resulted in the problems of overpopulation, poverty,
unemployment, ill-health, dependence upon parents, etc. The first legislation was passed in
1860 under which the minimum age for consummation of marriage in the case of girls was
raised to ten.
In 1891, the age of consent for girls was raised to twelve, and in 1925 to thirteen for married
girls and fourteen for unmarried ones. In 1929, the Child Marriage Restraint Act (Sharda Bill)
was passed. Under this Act, which came into being in 1930, the minimum age of marriage for a

8. girl was fixed at fourteen and for a boy at eighteen. According to the Hindu Marriage Act of
1955, the minimum age for a bride is fifteen, and for a bridegroom it is eighteen.
The legislations have not proved effective in this case. Education, economic pressures, and
migration to towns and cities from rural areas have certainly contributed to the raising of the
age at marriage of both the sexes. However, child marriage persists unchecked. Many a time,
even political leaders of repute have enacted child marriages of their wards. No stringent
actions are taken for violation of the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955.
Slavery was of two types:
(1) Domestic
(2) Predial (agricultural)
There were also institutions of the nautch (dance) girls and prostitutes. The latter was found
particularly in the princely states. Predial slavery was found in Bengal, Madras, Assam, Coorg
and southern Bombay Presidency (presently in Karnataka and Maharashtra, respectively). The
slaves of this category were insolvent debtors. Some of them were migrants from Rajputana.
Even slaves were sold out.
There was also the practice of entering a contract by a person to work for a specific period of
time either to pay the debt or to “have a fresh one”. Domestic slavery was confined to females.
The foreigners also indulged in the purchase of children in a clandestine manner and exported
them overseas.

9. Proclamations were made in Bengal, Madras, Bombay, etc., to prevent the institution of
slavery. Today, the institution exists in the form of bonded labour. It is known by different
names in different states. The British policy of apparent and selective non-interference in social
matters encouraged the institution of slavery and other institutions which supported this evil.
With the efforts of Ram Mohan Roy and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, the Hindu Widows’
Remarriage Act was passed in 1856. In 1861, a Widow Marriage Association was formed. The
Arya Samaj gave top priority to this programme.
q-4) Women convention on elimination of discrimination against women, 1979?
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW), adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is often described as an
international bill of rights for women. Consisting of a preamble and 30 articles, it defines
what constitutes discrimination against women and sets up an agenda for national action to
end such discrimination.
The Convention defines discrimination against women as "...any distinction, exclusion or
restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying
the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a
basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the
political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field."
By accepting the Convention, States commit themselves to undertake a series of measures to
end discrimination against women in all forms, including:
 to incorporate the principle of equality of men and women in their legal system,
abolish all discriminatory laws and adopt appropriate ones prohibiting discrimination
against women;
 to establish tribunals and other public institutions to ensure the effective protection of
women against discrimination; and
 to ensure elimination of all acts of discrimination against women by persons,
organizations or enterprises.

10. The Convention provides the basis for realizing equality between women and men through
ensuring women's equal access to, and equal opportunities in, political and public life --
including the right to vote and to stand for election -- as well as education, health and
employment. States parties agree to take all appropriate measures, including legislation and
temporary special measures, so that women can enjoy all their human rights and fundamental
freedoms.
The Convention is the only human rights treaty which affirms the reproductive rights of women
and targets culture and tradition as influential forces shaping gender roles and family relations.
It affirms women's rights to acquire, change or retain their nationality and the nationality of
their children. States parties also agree to take appropriate measures against all forms of traffic
in women and exploitation of women.
Countries that have ratified or acceded to the Convention are legally bound to put its provisions
into practice. They are also committed to submit national reports, at least every four years, on
measures they have taken to comply with their treaty obligations.
q-5) Institutional Mechanisms for the Advancement of Women ?
The creation and strengthening of national institutional mechanisms for the advancement of
women have substantially enhanced the ability of states to implement the objectives of the
Platform for Action, adopted by the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995.
Since then, nearly three-quarters of all states have established some form of national machinery
for the advancement of women.
The main task of these national machineries is to support government-wide mainstreaming of a
gender-equality perspective into all policy areas, including legislation, programmes and
projects. Gender mainstreaming, in this sense, is a strategy for making women's and men's
concerns equally integral to the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of all
policies and programmes.
The Beijing Platform for Action identified the creation and strengthening of national
machineries as one of 12 critical areas of concern, requiring action by governments.
During its forty-third session in 1999, the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
recommended further action to be taken to create new or strengthened national machineries for
the advancement of women and gender equality. Among the agreed conclusions of the session
were measures to ensure a continued strong political commitment to the strengthening of
national machineries and to placing them at the highest possible level of government, with the
authority needed to fulfil their mandated roles and responsibilities.
Strengthening National Machineries

11. Reaching the goal of equality between women and men ultimately depends upon profound
transformation in attitudes and behaviours at every level of society, starting at the grassroots
and continuing through the highest levels of government. National machineries can play an
instrumental role in stimulating and nurturing these transformations at every level. In this effort,
governments have sought to strengthen existing machineries in various ways, since the Beijing
Conference.
 In Ghana, the government has enhanced the status of the national machinery by placing it
at the highest possible level within the government, under the Office of the President,
with direct linkages to ministries, departments and agencies.
 Italy, Namibia, Panama, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, among others, have either
created new ministries to house the national machinery, upgraded the national machinery
to the status of commission under the leadership of a cabinet minister, or designated a
new minister to head the national machinery.
 Albania has elevated the national machinery to the Council of Ministers level, with the
chairperson reporting directly to the Vice Prime Minister.
 Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Senegal and Zambia are among the
countries that have established agencies or units for women's issues at various
governmental levels.
 In Viet Nam, the government assigned the Ministry of Planning to prepare the national
action plan for the advancement of women, the Ministry of Finance to balance the plan's
budget, and the national machinery to monitor the plan's implementation.
 In Mongolia, after the national machinery developed a national action plan for the
advancement of women, each province designed its own sub-programme to ensure the
active involvement of a broad cross-section of women.
Gender Concerns in Planning and Budget
In many states, national machineries have been instrumental in shaping national development
policies. Of particular note are advances that have been made in integrating a gender
perspective into budgeting, accountability and auditing functions. Tying gender concerns to
budgeting and auditing can prove to be an effective tool for holding governments accountable
and to raising awareness of the different impact that seemingly neutral budgetary decisions can
have on women and men.
 In Kenya, the Maldives and Tunisia, among others, the national machineries helped to
ensure that the government's commitment to gender mainstreaming was incorporated into
its national development plans.
 In Swaziland, a Gender Sector Committee was one of eight sector-based committees
established to prepare input for the National Development Strategy.
 The Philippines and South Africa are among the states that have drawn from Australia's
model of a "gender budget", which entails that all government agencies and departments

12. prepare a budget document disaggregating outlays in terms of impact on both women and
men.
 In Iran, the head of the national machinery is a member of the Cabinet, facilitating the
inclusion of women's issues in budgetary matters. In addition, the national machinery
reviews national budget items.
Gender Perspectives in Legislation, Policy and Programmes
National machineries have undertaken a variety of activities to support the revision of, and
compliance with, legislation to ensure gender equality as well the mainstreaming of a gender
perspective into all government policies and programmes.
 India has drafted a National Policy on Empowerment of Women, which outlines legal,
institutional and programmatic responses to gender discrimination. It has also designated
the National Commission for Women as Ombudsperson for Women.
 In the Russian Federation, the State Duma and the Federal Assembly have adopted a
strategy and guidelines for the development of legislation to prevent gender
discrimination.
 In Portugal, a parliamentary commission has been created to review all legislation from
an equality perspective.
 In Belize, an Equity and Equality Strategic Plan has been developed with a goal of
integrating a gender-sensitive approach into government and civil policies and
programmes.
 In Colombia, a Standing Advisory Team in the field of gender equality was created
within the National Planning Department, with a broad mandate to ensure gender
mainstreaming within national policies.
Mechanisms for Monitoring
and Accountability
National machineries have a crucial role to play in monitoring the implementation of the
Beijing Platform for Action and in instituting mechanisms for accountability. They have the
difficult task of analyzing how government actions result in tangible changes in women's lives.
 In Belarus, progress reports on the implementation of the national action plan for gender
equality are submitted to the Ministry of Social Welfare and the Council of Ministers. A
biannual report is also submitted to the President of the Republic.
 In Finland, the national machinery has coordinated an internal follow-up system that
operates within each Ministry.
 In the United States, through the national machinery, government agencies produce
annual progress reports on the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action.

13.  In Rwanda, a committee composed of members of the national machinery, United
Nations agencies, bilateral agencies and non-governmental organizations monitors
implementation of the Platform for Action.
 In Jordan, where the national machinery is composed of high-level government officials
and representatives of civil society, each participating government and civil society body
is required to submit regular progress reports.
Collaboration with
Non-governmental Organizations
Partnerships with civil society are critical to the sustainability and legitimacy of national
machineries, and can lead to social transformations in the status of women. The Beijing
Conference itself led to a proliferation of new non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with
women's issues central to their mission.
 The Women's Council of Brunei Darussalam, an umbrella organization of women's
organizations with over 2,000 members, has collaborated with the national machinery
and other government bodies in the establishment of an HIV/AIDS foundation and a
committee on social issues.
 In Turkey, the national machinery established NGO commissions on health, education,
employment and law to assist in the follow-up to the Platform for Action.
 In Niger, an umbrella association of women's NGOs with over 3,000 members has
recently been formed, and has begun to collaborate with the national machinery.
 In Eritrea, the national machinery is an NGO with a network of over 200,000 members.
The members of its central committee are also members of Parliament or in high-ranking
government posts, helping to consolidate the role of the national machinery within the
government.
Section (b)
short questions
q-6) comment on dowry prohibition act 1961?
Dowry Prohibition Act, Indian law, enacted on May 1, 1961, intended to prevent the giving or
receiving of a dowry. Under the Dowry Prohibition Act, dowry includes property, goods, or

14. money given by either party to the marriage, by the parents of either party, or by anyone else in
connection with the marriage. The Dowry Prohibition Act applies to persons of all religions
in India.
The original text of the Dowry Prohibition Act was widely judged to be ineffective in curbing
the practice of dowry. Moreover, specific forms of violence against women continued to be
linked to a failure to meet dowry demands. As a result, the legislation underwent
subsequent amendment. In 1984, for example, it was changed to specify that presents given to a
bride or a groom at the time of a wedding are allowed. The law required, however, that a list be
maintained describing each gift, its value, the identity of the person giving it, and the person’s
relation to either party to the marriage. The act and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code
were further amended to protect female victims of dowry-related violence. Another layer of
legal protection was provided in 2005 under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence
Act.
Amendments to the original Dowry Prohibition Act also established minimum and maximum
punishments for giving and receiving dowry and created a penalty for demanding dowry or
advertising offers of money or property in connection with a marriage. The Indian Penal Code
was also modified in 1983 to establish specific crimes of dowry-related cruelty, dowry death,
and abetment of suicide. These enactments punished violence against women by their husbands
or their relatives when proof of dowry demands or dowry harassment could be shown.
Despite the revisions, however, the practice of dowry and dowry-related violence still occurs in
varying degrees within several communities and socioeconomic groups of India.
q-7) Comment on offence of dowry death in the prespective of section 304 b of ipc ?
Section 304B in The Indian Penal Code
1[304B. Dowry death.—
(1) 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”, and such husband or relative shall be deemed to have caused her death.
Explanation.—For the purpose of this sub-section, “dowry” shall have the same meaning as in
section 2 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 (28 of 1961).
(2) 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 for life.
q-8) Comment on cruelty against married women under section 498 A ipc?
Section 498A in The Indian Penal Code
376
[498A. Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to
cruelty.—Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a

15. woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment
for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation.—For the purpose of this section, “cruelty” means—
(a) any wilful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive the woman
to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health
(whether mental or physical) of the woman; or
(b) harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view to
coercing her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any
property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or any person
related to her to meet such demand.]
Section (c)
Very short questions
q-9) What is streedhan?
The word ‘’Streedhan’ has been derived from the words ‘Stri’ meaning a woman and the word
‘dhana’ means property. Therefore on combining these two words we get ‘property of woman’
her ‘Streedhan’. This is a concept, which came down all the centuries from the Hindu Smritis
but has today, engulfed all forms of marriages in all visible castes and regions.
According to the age old Smritis and all old schools of Hindu law such as Dayabhaga,
Mitakshara etc. the following was Streedhan in the hands of a woman whether she is a maiden,
married woman or widow[2].
1. Gifts made to a woman before the nuptial fire.
2. Gifts made to a woman at the bridal procession
3. Gifts made in token of love by father-in-law, mother-in-law
4. Gifts made by father, mother and brother
q-10) Light on women’s right of controlling reproductivity?
Women’s sexual and reproductive health is related to multiple human rights, including the right
to life, the right to be free from torture, the right to health, the right to privacy, the right to
education, and the prohibition of discrimination. The Committee on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW) have both clearly indicated that women’s right to health includes their sexual and

16. reproductive health. This means that States have obligations to respect, protect and fulfill rights
related to women’s sexual and reproductive health. The Special Rapporteur on the right of
everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
maintains that women are entitled to reproductive health care services, goods and facilities that
are: (a) available in adequate numbers; (b) accessible physically and economically; (c)
accessible without discrimination; and (d) of good quality
Despite these obligations, violations of women’s sexual and reproductive health rights are
frequent. These take many forms including denial of access to services that only women
require, or poor quality services, subjecting women’s access to services to third party
authorization, and performance of procedures related to women’s reproductive and sexual
health without the woman’s consent, including forced sterilization, forced virginity
examinations, and forced abortion. Women’s sexual and reproductive health rights are also at
risk when they are subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) and early marriage.
q-11) Light on child and criminal liability ?
MINIMUM AGE OF CRIMINAL LIABILTY
The age limit set by the legal system mainly decides on how Courts would deal with
miscreants.
Section 82 of the Indian Penal Code states;
Nothing is an offence which is done by a child under seven years of age. The legal system
states that a minor cannot be convicted nor be tried by a Court in the same manner for an
offence or wrongdoing as an adult. Any wrongdoing committed by a child between the age
group of 7 and 12 years old is not presumed to be an offence as the law states that a child in this
age group is not in the capacity to understand the repercussions of his own actions since he has
not attained the level of maturity at that age and the offence committed by him was not
committed with mens rea.
Section 83 of the Indian Penal Code states;
Nothing is an offence which is done by a child above seven years of age and under twelve, who
has not attained sufficient maturity of understanding to judge of the nature and consequences of
his conduct on that occasion.
In Kakoo vs. The State of Himachal Pradesh, the accused Kakoo aged 13 years was convicted
for committing rape on a child of two years and was sentenced to four years’ rigorous
imprisonment. The act of the accused was so sinful and outrageous that he had virtually to be
dragged away from the helpless baby victim, he put up a fierce struggle with the mother of the
victim when she tried to secure him. However, his sentence was reduced to one year’s rigorous
imprisonment and a fine of Rupees 2,000/- on the ground that a child offender is not to be
treated in the same manner as a mature adult.

17. q-12)State responsibility towards the education of a child?
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act or Right to Education
Act(RTE) is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted on 4 August 2009, which describes the
modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children between the age of
6 to 14 years in India under Article 21A of the Indian Constitution.[1]
India became one of 135
countries to make education a fundamental right of every child when the act came into force on
1 April 2010
q-13) Legal Age for Working in India
Hiring children below the age of 14 years for any kind of work, other than in certain family-
based work, is a cognizable offence and will attract a jail term of upto 2 years. Adolescents
between the age of 14 – 18 years cannot be employed in any hazardous occupation. Under the
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012, the parents of the underage
child employed can be penalised as well.
q-14) Child’s contractual liability?
Any contract which a court deems to be detrimental to the interests of the child is void, plain
and simple. It is not voidable - it is void. It is as if it never existed. Of course, this takes a court
order to achieve but it is an important deterrent to commercial hustlers who would not hesitate
to extract money from a child.