DOWRY: The Stigma Set in Stone

Dowry is one of the most notorious problems plaguing the institution of marriage in Pakistan. Termed to be’ pre-mortem inheritance’[1], it is a social stigma which has been accepted as a cultural tradition. Ever since a girl is born, the mothers and grandmothers of the family become more concerned about the little girl’s dowry than her education or her emotional and mental well being. In marriage, not only do the bride’s family believe in “giving away” their daughter, but also a hefty dowry. Typical dowries include furnishings for a complete house, gold jewelry, cash, vehicles, gifts for the groom’s family e.t.c. and are therefore a heavy financial burden. This amounts to an enormous social and economic pressure for the family of a female child and adds to the impetus behind the preference for male offsprings. As practices with negative consequences are often questioned as to their existence, so is dowry, given the egregious consequences it promulgates. However, the answer to this lies in the constructs of honor besetting Pakistan, where dowry is not a gift by the parents of the bride to her but a mandatory requisition by the groom’s family, which adds to the female’s marriageability.

In the past, the main piece of legislation concerned with dowry have been The Dowry And Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, 1976, ancillary to which, the Federal Government later introduced The Dowry And Bridal Gifts Restriction Rules, 1976, and later amended the Act of 1976 with The Dowry And Bridal Gifts (Restriction) (Amendment) of 2016, all of which are viable law.

Under The Dowry And Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, ‘dowry’ means any property given before, at or after the marriage either directly or indirectly, to the bride by her parents in connection with the marriage but it does not include property which the bride may inherit under the laws of inheritance and succession applicable to her.^[2]

The incumbent legislation has tried to strike at the very core of the issue of dowry, i.e. the monetary expense involved. It has set limitations on the value of dowry and bridal gifts and has restricted the amount of expenses incurred on the wedding ceremony itself. The monetary value of any gifts to be exchanged has been capped at a maximum of Rs 5000/-.[3]

Any gifts exchanged for Dowry are required to be registered in the name of the bride,[4] with a complete list of items exchanged at the time of the marriage to be annexed to the nikahnama and registered with the marriage Registrar. ^[5] The list can then serve as concrete evidence for the exact value of the dowry, in cases of dispute. This protects both the bride and groom from confusion, miscalculation and false claims. Protections for the bride’s ownership of the dowry items have been solidified by courts which have been seen to direct grooms to replace items of dower with either the same items (in case of damage or when the items are no longer available) or with cash equivalent to the market value of those items.[6]

The Act requires all items of dowry to be displayed at the time of the rukhsati so as to ensure that a public record of the gifts is kept by the witnesses.[7] This ownership vests absolutely in the name of the bride and is not restricted or limited in any sense.[8] If implemented, this would help to resolve issues of ownership which arise upon the dissolution of marriage as divorces turn sour easily and majority of brides are stripped of the money, jewelry or other assets received by them upon their marriage, regardless of them being part of the dowry exchange or personal gifts received by the bride. Following this, lengthy litigation ensues to contest for the items of dower, which ends up costing more than the actual cost of the items being argued for, fearing which many brides choose to forgo their rights to these items. The provisions of the legislation have been designed to circumvent this.

Dowry encourages the gender bias against women as it adds to the ‘burdens borne by the female’s family’ before she is married off whereby which her expenses are axed from the family’s economic responsibility[9]. It also perceives the female to be valued in terms of the assets of dowry, instead of her own worth as a person. This has resulted in encouraging emotional and physical abuse against women who either do not comply to the cultural practice of dowry or do not comply with the expectations held by the family she marries into. Newspapers are filled with stories where insufficient dowry upset the groom and his family leading to the female being subjected to continuing physical or emotional torture, divorce or even death. Such deaths are recognised to be ‘dowry murders’ as they stem from this practice.[10] Despite the government trying to limit the monetary value of dowry, the exchange is so well entrenched in the culture of Pakistan that many believe it to be impossible that a marriage can take place without it. A survey conducted by the Gillani Research Foundation estimated that 56% of Pakistanis^[11] believe it impossible for females to be married in Pakistan, without the exchange of dowry.

But the attempts of The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act have been in vain as its provisions have never been implemented. The act has never been given any credence to and rarely ever has any case pursuant to its provisions been brought to court. The fatal flaw therefore, lies within the Pakistanis who so desperately cling to this beloved practice. While many would prefer this practice’s elimination, concerns of honor or pride are unlikely to free them from its clutches. While this law can be theorized upon, criticized, praised or even amended to enact a new legal order with stricter penalties for non-compliance, it is all likely to engender similar failure as lack of implementation of any law renders it useless.

[1] Goody, 1973.

[2] The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, s 2(b).

[3] The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, s 3(1).

[4] The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, s 5.

[5] The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, s 8.

[6] 2013 SCMR 1049.

[7] The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, s 7.

[8] The Dowry and Bridal Gifts (Restriction) Act, s 5.

[9] Krishnaswamy 1995.

[10] Bloch 2002.

[11] Daily Polls, Gilani Research Foundation Polls, ‘Tradition of dowry in Pakistan’ (Gallup Pakistan, 17 January 2017) <http://gallup.com.pk/tradition-of-dowry-in-pakistan-56-pakistanis-believe-it-is-impossible-for-girls-to-get-married-without-dowry/> accessed 29 January 2018.