Can you imagine an Indian household where men are often seen in the kitchen doing the daily chores along with women, and women taking care of the household expenses along with the men? I can, and that’s because I grew up in such a family. Though there were some things which only father used to do, and tasks which only mother did, there was nothing confined to gender roles, but a mutual setup. Parents made sure that their son knew how to cook and do the cleaning, and their daughter to get a sense of responsibility while spending, and to make an earning. Contrasting to this, when we look at the Legal System, we preach equality, but treat men and women differently. We are going to discuss in detail about men, gender stereotypes and Indian Legal System, and throw light upon how men are discriminated against for things which are not even proved yet, and the presumption in favour of women that they are the most innocent creatures.
What is the role of stereotypes in the legal system?
India is a country where rule of law is a thing, which means nobody is above the laws. Lawyers, Judges, Police Administration, etc. are part of the society, and at times have some pre-conceived notions against a particular group or act. Legislators are not untouched from those stereotypes, and in fact play a crucial part in embedding those stereotypes in the legal system by making laws which may bypass the basics of justice and stand by the societal stereotypes. This can be understood by the fact that when we talk about castes, the scheduled castes and tribes as against the general castes are expected to be the victims first hand, without even getting into details. When there is a dispute between a man and a woman, people would stand by the woman assuming that the man must be the perpetrator. That’s how stereotypes invade the Indian Legal System.
What is gender bias in the legal system?
Gender equality is well celebrated and promoted through equality laws in India. The same laws have given women a different pedestal as compared to men. When we talk about gender stereotypes and the Indian legal system, it is the general assumption that women are always the victims, and men are always the perpetrators. The Constitution of India lays the foundation for special laws favouring women. Here, we see the law makers bringing in stereotypes in the statutes. There are provisions where arrest involves caution in case of women, bail is easily granted for women, Judges assume that women cannot be the perpetrators. In case a married woman approaches the authorities against her husband or in-laws, it is assumed that she must have been ill-treated, while most of the time women are seen misusing laws. Such biased behavior has ignited a sense of insecurity among men.
What are some gender biased laws in India?
Gender-biased laws are those which make a certain act a crime when done by a specific gender. The same action if done by the other gender does not attract the legal clutches. The same can be understood below:
Sexual Crimes
Speaking of sexual crimes in India, they are mostly laid under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the POCSO Act. First talking about the crimes under BNS, there is nothing which could punish anyone who sexually abuses a man. In other words, men cannot be victims of sexual crimes as per the criminal laws in India. On the other hand, there are laws on rape, sexual assault, etc. wherein only a woman can be a victim, and in most of the cases, a man is the perpetrator. So if a woman commits a sexual offence against another woman, it is not punishable as well.
Coming to POCSO Act, it relates to sexual crimes against minors. A recent trend shows that minor girls who willingly enter romantic/sexual relationships before attaining the age of majority, and whose families do not approve of their relationship, often end up prosecuting their partners for sexual crimes under family pressure. The provisions of POCSO Act are strict, and the man who genuinely loved the girl ends up being the victim of gender stereotypes and Indian Legal System, which does not listen to men in distress. There is another POSH Act which punishes men for sexual harassment of women at workplace, and there is no scope for vice versa.
Matrimonial Cases
Marriage is a sacred union, wherein man and wife are considered the two wheels of the chariot of family. However, the gender stereotypes and Indian Legal System put in all the pressure upon men, whether it is financial burden, or that of preventing any violence. Let’s understand this with an example. When marriage is in talks, allegations of dowry can land the husband and his family in jail, even if nothing was demanded. However, if the bride’s family forcefully gives dowry, there is no whisper of laws, even if giving dowry is an equal offence. When the couple gets married, and there happen to be some misunderstandings, misuse of provisions like IPC 49A (BNS 85 and 86), maintenance to wife, domestic violence and dowry, etc. are just unavoidable. The authorities and Courts already presume that the husband being a man must have ill-treated his wife, and thus, men become the ultimate victims of gender stereotypes and legal system.
Domestic Violence
While the law regarding domestic violence is mostly part of matrimonial cases in India, it is not confined to a marriage. However, only women can initiate legal proceedings under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005. Here, a conjecture reflects that men in a household cannot be victims of violence. On the other hand, there is another notion that men hit women, abuse women orally, physically and sexually. All this adds up to men always being the violent ones.
How Gender Stereotypes in the Courtroom affect men?
When a man is standing before the Judge for a crime against woman, gender stereotypes and Indian Legal System being bent in favour of women kick in. The questions and counter-questions often reflect the pre-conceived notion that the man must be the perpetrator. This can be understood in the adultery judgment wherein discussion was concentrated upon how women were not supposed to be subordinate to men. However, the mere aspect that only men were being punished for being indulged in adultery with a married woman. The same act done by a woman was not a crime. Thus, the sense of justice is somewhat absent when it comes to men in gender based crimes.
Advocating for Gender Neutral Laws
Here, we discussed the correlation between men, gender stereotypes and the Indian Legal System. What’s on target is the preconceived notion that men can only be the wrong-doers, and women can only be the victims. A few days ago, there was a report depicting that 70% instances of domestic violence are instigated by women, who hit their husbands in the first place, which leads to men raising their hands, which in turn leads to initiating legal recourse for domestic violence. Here, what we see is a domestic dispute, wherein men and women were equal in terms of rights, wherein the man being hit by the woman was not an offence, but the moment the man retaliated, he became a perpetrator.
Now picture this, a world where sexual assault against a man is also a crime, where women in marriage hold equal pedestal in the Indian Legal System when it comes to maintenance, domestic violence, child support, etc. Such an overturn may balance the approach, instilling a fear among women misusing laws, that what they do against a man, will not go unnoticed, and has the chances to come around. Gender neutral laws will only expand the scope of laws, and will not nullify the legal protection for women.
Know how men can protect themselves against women misusing laws
Reasoning – Why are Men important in Law?
We have come along too far while fighting against patriarchy, that we didn’t even realise when we started fighting against the men themselves. Just the way men having an upper hand in everything was not a good idea for the society at large, men being presumed criminals is also not sensible. Men and women are pillars of equal height and strength, both handling different pressures in their respective roles. Just the way confining women within the four walls of the house in pursuance of gender roles is wrong, picturising men as the ATM, paying for everyone’s wants and needs is not just at all.
When we talk about men, gender stereotypes and the Indian Legal System, the idea is not to diminish the position of women in the society, but to treat men equally. When preconceived notions hit against men in the legal system, there is no sense of justice, or social security. In such cases, innocent men suffer the most, along with the people who love and care about him. In this way, everyone related to that innocent man loses his/her trust in the Legal System. Thus, for a healthy society, there should be laws and legal systems which do not differentiate between men and women for doing the same actions. What should be punishable is the actions, keeping up with the dignity of one and all, being distant from gender roles.
This thought provoking piece discussing the injustice against men due to gender stereotypes and the Indian Legal System is presented by Ms Ridhi Khurana.
