According to the data of 2020, the female population is 48.04 percent whereas the male population accounts for 51.96 percent, slightly more than that of the female population. But when it comes to men’s rights in India, I would be happy if you are able to find any. It is true that women’s rights seem perfectly fine on paper although not as much in real life when it comes to men’s rights, their rights are not even scribbled on the paper and maybe still stuck in the ink of the pen.
The expressions like men don’t cry, the man of the house, protector or savior and Grow some balls are perhaps the reason that they are thought to be mentally, physically, and emotionally strong, leading to no specific men’s rights for them. The preconceived idea that women are most vulnerable to crimes including sexual harassment doesn’t give people reasons to keep men in the same shoes like that of women.
Men’s Rights are Human Rights.
Are Shields turning into Swords?
Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code safeguards a woman from facing the cruelty dawned upon her by the husband or relatives in relation to the non-fulfillment of dowry. Seems all perfect? It is not. According to Section 113B of the Indian Evidence Act, if a woman commits suicide within seven years of marriage, it is presumed that she was compelled to do so by her husband or husband’s relatives. Whereas on one hand, this law is protecting women against cruelty and dowry death, it has also become a weapon for them to accuse the husband and his family of their own will or merely for taking revenge.
In the case of Savitri Devi v Ramesh Chand & Ors, the court held plainly that there were abuse and misuse of the arrangements; so much that it was hitting at the establishment of marriage itself and did not end up being great for the soundness of society on the loose. The court accepted that specialists and legislators needed to survey the circumstances and come up with legitimate arrangements to keep such issues from occurring.
According to the data provided by the National Crime Record Bureau, under Section 498A of the IPC, on average, 1,00,000 cases are filed yearly. Out of which, the rate of conviction in the year 2011 was 20% and 14% in 2015. Under all IPC sections, the conviction rate in 2015 was 46%. According to the data, the gaps in between the conviction rate are the testimony of the large number of false cases being registered under 498A.
Her Body, Her Choice – Where’s He in the picture?
It is true that reproduction is a two people thing and no male or female can do it alone. Women have the right to decide the spacing, gap, and the number of children she wants to have, and also the right to possess the information and means to decide freely the above mentioned. The right to make decisions about reproduction free of coercion, violence, and discrimination is also clinched in her fist and all these rights have been given to women by various programs of the government.
Whereas, there is a notion that men control reproductive choices, flip to the other side of the coin. According to a survey conducted by BBC, the global fertility rate is falling and the reason is not low sperm count, etc. The reason is the independence of women in the work and education sector, easy access to contraceptives, and women choosing to not opt for motherhood. This doesn’t mean that women should be less empowered but it is a bitter truth that men have no choices when it comes to deciding whether to have a child or not because only a woman can bear a child.
What about adoption?
Under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956, if a man wants to adopt a child, criteria like age of majority, soundness of mind, the capacity to understand the provisions of the act, etc. needs to be fulfilled. After fulfilling the criteria, a man if married should have the consent of the wife or the wife must be dead at the time of adoption.
Herein, the woman gets to choose ultimately. Also, a man cannot adopt a girl child as a single parent, whereas, a woman can adopt both a male and a female child. In the case of Bhoolaram and Ors. v. Ram Lal and Ors., the question was raised that in case of adoption, is it necessary to take the consent of all the wives and the court held the answer yes. If any of the wives has absconded to someplace, she cannot be construed as dead unless all the ingredients of Section 7 of the Act are complied with.
Child Custody
In India, it is a preconceived notion that the mother is the best caregiver to the child, but it is not the case. There are instances where it has been seen that a father is more capable than a mother in raising up a child. While in cases of divorce and separation, usually the custody of the child is granted to the mother, fathers need to fight a tough battle to get the same.
A father can only get custody of the child in case:
- If the mother is not willing to take up the custody; it itself shows that the first choice is given to the woman in any case.
- If the mother is not mentally stable; this again has to be proven with a lot of tussles.
- If the child is above the age of 13 years or above wishes to stay with his father. In such cases, the mother has the upper hand to manipulate the child and inflame him/her against the father.
All these and many more criteria need to be met for a man to win the child custody of his own child.
Domestic Violence – Men stay quiet
India is a male dominant country as the population ratio clearly points out and therefore, it is hard for people to believe that men too can be the victims of Domestic Violence. It is disheartening that there are no specific laws that confer men’s rights whereas there is a whole act named Protection of women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.
Facts are stubborn things, and they have the impertinence to stare you in the face.
Nani A. Palkhiwala
In a study published on the website of the National Centre for Biotechnology Information, 52.4% of men experienced gender-based violence. Out of 1000 guys, 51.5% experienced violence at the hands of their spouses/private accomplice in any event once in the course of their life, and 10.5% over the most recent 12 months. The most widely recognized spousal violence was emotional (51.6%) trailed by physical violence (6%). Just in one-tenth cases, physical attacks were extreme. In practically 50% of the cases, the husband started physical and emotional violence. Gender evenness doesn’t exist in India for physical violence. Men feel ashamed in expressing or coming out and taking action against violence practiced over them.
Conclusion
On a graph, the line of humanity is showing more affection to the X-axis and the line of crime rates says that the sky is my limit. Where both men and women are prone to crime, discrimination, and vicious activities against men are going unnoticed. Men are being ill-treated in everyday life but they either stay quiet because of fear of false cases or because of the notion Mard ko dard nahi hota. Nature has made both males and females different and therefore, we should stick to the natural rules. Men are still preferred for combat roles, mass killings are often targeted at men, and males are more likely to be subject to corporal punishments.
Other than this, they often face sexual assaults but choose to remain quiet, give up custody of the child, and do not get to see the childhood of the kid, expected to give up the seat for women irrespective of the circumstance and his own conditions. There are special Acts for women and National and State Women Commissions are also set up, but this doesn’t go the same with men. Men are born out of risen apes and not fallen angels and imperfection tends to prevail everywhere but, the need of the hour is Gender- Neutral Laws and laws that grant Men’s Rights alongside female’s, and that men and women should actually be equal when it comes to rights granted to them. Men are a substantial creation of god and all men are dogs is not true, justice and humanity need to be considered over everything else.
Editor’s Note
Women in India have always been considered vulnerable to crimes. People have believed that every crime that a woman stands a witness to has actually happened. However, crimes against men go unnoticed. Men are either scared of being falsely accused of a crime or being called weak. The article critically analyses the situation of men in our country. It takes into account the fact that various laws have been built for the safety of women, but there is no such law or a rule to protect the dignity of men.