Stricter norms to arrest husbands in dowry cases
The conviction rate is only 15 percent in husband cruelty cases
By : arjun raghunath
Update: 2014-08-19 06:25 GMT
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It may not be possible now for married women to easily persecute their husbands and relatives on charges of dowry harassment and other forms of cruelty. The state police have prescribed stricter norms for initiating arrests in such cases and other instances that could attract up to seven years’ imprisonment.
This follows a recent Supreme Court observation hat the rate of charge-sheeting in cases under IPC 489 A that deals with cruelty towards married women by husbands and relatives was 93.6 per cent while the conviction rate was only 15 percent. There were even instances of bed-ridden grandparents of husbands being arrested through misuse of the law’s provisions by disgruntled wives.
A fresh circular issued by the state police chief K.S. Balasubramanian the other day prescribes that any arrests without warrant or order of the magistrate should be made by a police officer only for preventing the accused from committing any further offence, tampering with evidence, posing a threat to others and to ensure proper investigation and the presence of the accused before the court when required.
The police officer should also record in writing the reasons for not arresting a person. A checklist on the above will have to be furnished while forwarding the accused before the magistrate. Even departmental action can be taken against cops who fail to adhere to the norms.
Earlier also, the police had prescribed that any arrests based on such complaints would be taken only with the written order of a police officer in the rank of district police chief. Afterwards, there had been slight relief for husbands and relatives.