Supreme Court dismisses plea alleging misuse of women-centric laws
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea challenging certain provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act and alleging misuse of women-centric laws.
"You can go and raise all these grounds in Parliament," a bench of Justices B R Gavai and K Vinod Chandran told the counsel appearing for the petitioner.
The petitioner's counsel said they were seeking to challenge certain provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, including sections 2 and 3.
While section 2 of the Act deals with definition of dowry, section 3 pertains to penalty for giving or taking dowry.
The counsel said the petitioner was concerned about these laws which adversely impacts men.
The public interest litigation (PIL) names laws like the Dowry Prohibition Act, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, and the provision on cruelty to women in the erstwhile Indian Penal Code to question their validity.
The plea filed by petitioner Rupshi Singh highlighted the alleged malice in law, the unreasonableness contained in the impugned provisions and the lack of semblance of law in the provisions.
The petitioner was seeking protection of men against the atrocities committed by women filing false complaints, abusing the very laws that were meant to protect them from harm.
The PIL submitted that the Dowry Prohibition Act was discriminatory on the grounds of religion and further assailed the provisions of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 as being women-centric and discriminatory against men.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
