Ismotwara Ahmed, 25, a housewife from Dacop Bathighata, Khulna, was writhing in pain at the burns unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Her condition was
critical as she had suffered 80 per cent burn injuries. Her husband put kerosene on her while she was alseep and set her ablaze, for having failed to pay dowry to him.
Dr Faroque Ahmed, a surgeon at the burns unit, said it was difficult to predict anything as Ismotwara suffered severe burn injuries.
Hanifa Khatun, her mother, said she had given as many gifts as possible to her son-in-law before marriage. But the in-laws of Ismotwara started treating her very badly after two years of the marriage.
Recounting Ismotwara’s ordeal, Hanifa said her son-in-law would often come and demand money, so that he could buy a trawler and start a new business. “We have a piece of land and a small shop in Hugulbunia village of Dacop. We have little or no income. How could I give him so much of money to buy a trawler?” she added.
Ismotwara had a miscarriage three months back after she was mercilessly beaten up by her husband. “But we tolerated everything for the sake of my daughter’s future,” Hanifa said.
This is not an isolated incident. There are numerous tales of torture as many girls like Ismotwara are facing untold suffering every day for failing to pay their dowry. Most of the cases, however, remain unreported.
Leaders of different rights groups and academicians have expressed serious concern over the sharp rise in dowry-related violence. They said the perpetrators must be given exemplary punishment, adding that the culprits mostly escape by using loopholes of law.
A report by Bangladesh Mohila Parishad (BMP), a rights group working on gender issues, showed that from January to July this year, the number of dowry-related killing was 145 and there were 117 cases of tortures.
In 2012, a total of 295 women were killed and 262 were victims of torture due to dowry.
To prevent such deaths and torture, the ministry of women and children’s affairs has taken some initiatives like formation of youth clubs, arranging concerts and awareness generation against dowry-related crimes. The ministry is also thinking of collaborating with the education ministry to include this subject in the curriculum for high school students to raise awareness at an early age.
Ayesha Khanam, the president of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad, said the number of dowry deaths is on the rise as the perpetrators are not often given exemplary punishments. She said that the government should set up a monitoring cell to see whether the existing laws are being implemented or not.
Advocate Sultana Kamal, executive director of Ain-O-Shalish Kendra and a former adviser to the caretaker government, observed that the culprits have been using legal loopholes to escape punishment. She said that the government must implement the relevant law without any political consideration. The evil of dowry could only be eradicated through mass awareness and this can be done by making education the top priority, she added.
Mahbuba Nasrin, professor of sociology in Dhaka University, said the evil of dowry cannot be eradicated overnight if poverty is not eliminated from society. She also added that unless the people’s mindset changes, it would be very difficult to eradicate the practice from society. Dowry is also deeply linked with the vicious cycle of poverty, she Nasrin added.
-With The Independent input
