Last week, not far from New Delhi, a case came to light involving domestic violence, greed, dowry harassment, torture, years of abuse and, subsequently, murder. None of these crimes are particularly uncommon in the country's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh.
Thirty-year-old Vipin Bhati burnt to death his wife, Nikki Bhati, 26, at his family home, with the help of his mother Daya (a name which, paradoxically, means compassion), as the couple's seven-year-old son watched. He told reporters: “They first put something on Mumma. Then they slapped her, before setting her on fire with a lighter." She died on the way to the hospital.
In the nine years they had been married, the accused is said to have frequently hounded his wife and in-laws for more money – the latest demand was $41,000 – or a luxury car, despite already receiving a dowry that included an SUV and nearly 500 grams of gold at the time of their wedding. He is now in custody, after allegedly trying to escape and being shot in the leg by the police, as are his mother, father and brother – who, as it happens, is married to the sister of Nikki.
The two sisters married the brothers at a joint wedding. At the time, the men were unemployed and lived off their father's grocery shop income. The sisters later started a beauty parlour and began to enjoy a degree of financial independence. They would also post Instagram reels about beauty makeovers, a pastime to which at least one of the brothers objected.
It's often difficult to pinpoint the triggers and undercurrents for marital rows, but money is a recurring motif in a vast number of arranged marriages. A high prevalence of dowry-related disputes or harassment is not restricted to any one part of India, though some states, particularly in the country's north-east, have far fewer than others.
In the north Indian state of Rajasthan last week, a 32-year-old schoolteacher set herself and her three-year-old daughter alight. She left a note accusing her husband, his parents and his sister of harassment. When she got married 12 years ago, the groom’s family received a car and “other valuables” in dowry, the teacher’s father said.
It’s easy to forget that dowries have been illegal – with some exceptions – in India since 1961. But the Dowry Prohibition Act is difficult to enact in a heavily classist society of 1.4 billion, despite how apparent it is that things need to change and have needed to for decades.
Between 2017 and 2021, 35,493 deaths related to dowry disputes were reported in the country. That’s about 20 women killed a day. The number of women enduring harassment is much higher.
In too many of these cases, it’s also stunning that female alliances find such little room
In many Indian Hindu communities, dowries are traditionally paid by the bride’s family to the groom. In Indian Muslim communities, the equivalent practice, known as mahr, sees the money paid from the groom to the bride. India’s Muslim Personal Law allows the latter.
“Dowry laws are rarely enforced properly,” Karuna Nundy, an Indian Supreme Court lawyer told The Telegraph, a British newspaper, this week. “Rather than punishing abuse and protecting women, the authorities dismiss cases altogether, leaving women without safety or shelter”.
The frequent absence of any real enforcement of the law allows many men – often educated and solvent – to feel entitled and perfectly at ease with their greed, which is commonly validated by their parents and communities.
In too many of these cases, it’s also stunning that female alliances find such little room, with mothers-in-law and sisters-in-law equally party to the crime of harassment, and the complete breakdown of decency or anything resembling a human value.
But as with a lot of deep-rooted societal issues that plague many developing countries, solutions do exist: teach better values in schools, broaden public awareness campaigns, make legal enforcement stricter. Solutions are not easy to put into practice. It can also take several decades to shift attitudes, expectations and behaviour.
And greed, it would appear, keeps up with inflation, or at least aspiration. In July, in Tamil Nadu, the body of a 27-year-old woman was discovered inside a parked car. Unable to cope with her in-laws’ dowry demands, she sent her father a string of voice notes apologising, saying she loved him and her mum, before ending her life by consuming pesticide tablets. Her father told the Indian Express newspaper that the groom's family reportedly demanded a dowry of 1 billion rupees ($11.4 million), a figure they allegedly said would be enough to start a business.
There are plenty more such cases, with different details, but they fall in the same category of dowry harassment.
“Instead of giving daughters their rightful share of property, families pour money into weddings, and dowries, almost like paying ransom, hoping their daughters will be kept safe,” said Ms Nundy.
Other developing countries have managed to make some progress on reducing societal pressures to attach financial conditions to marriage. Writing in The National earlier this month, Neslihan Cevik, a sociologist at the University of Virginia, cited the examples of Bangladesh and Indonesia.
She pointed out the advantages of tightly regulating the financial cost of marriage and promoting low-cost wedding ceremonies. “In Indonesia, modest dowry practices and targeted, subsidised mortgage programmes help support more affordable pathways into household formation. The result is a low-cost, culturally sanctioned pathway into family-building”.
Even though it may not be straightforward to adapt solutions from elsewhere to an Indian context, not least for when there are religious differences, it’s time to start thinking on similar progressive lines and cracking down on what has essentially become a normalised crime.
There has been rightful anger across many sections of Indian society and the diaspora online over what happened to Nikki, and keeps happening to 20 women a day. But that will probably still fall plenty short of what's needed to end the systemic free passes to greedy grooms and their families – as well as to too many willing or even inadvertent perpetrators on the brides' side.
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
Getting there
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Tbilisi from Dh1,025 return including taxes
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
The five pillars of Islam
Who is Mohammed Al Halbousi?
The new speaker of Iraq’s parliament Mohammed Al Halbousi is the youngest person ever to serve in the role.
The 37-year-old was born in Al Garmah in Anbar and studied civil engineering in Baghdad before going into business. His development company Al Hadeed undertook reconstruction contracts rebuilding parts of Fallujah’s infrastructure.
He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.
He is a member of the Al Hal Sunni-based political party and the Sunni-led Coalition of Iraqi Forces, which is Iraq’s largest Sunni alliance with 37 seats from the May 12 election.
He maintains good relations with former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law Coaliton, Hadi Al Amiri’s Badr Organisation and Iranian officials.
In 2018, the ICRC received 27,756 trace requests in the Middle East alone. The global total was 45,507.
There are 139,018 global trace requests that have not been resolved yet, 55,672 of these are in the Middle East region.
More than 540,000 individuals approached the ICRC in the Middle East asking to be reunited with missing loved ones in 2018.
The total figure for the entire world was 654,000 in 2018.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Scoreline
Australia 2-1 Thailand
Australia: Juric 69', Leckie 86'
Thailand: Pokklaw 82'
The years Ramadan fell in May
MATCH INFO
Crawley Town 3 (Tsaroulla 50', Nadesan 53', Tunnicliffe 70')
Leeds United 0
More coverage from the Future Forum
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The Written World: How Literature Shaped History
Martin Puchner
Granta
Read more about the coronavirus
SPECS
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The essentials
What: Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
When: Friday until March 9
Where: All main sessions are held in the InterContinental Dubai Festival City
Price: Sessions range from free entry to Dh125 tickets, with the exception of special events.
Hot Tip: If waiting for your book to be signed looks like it will be timeconsuming, ask the festival’s bookstore if they have pre-signed copies of the book you’re looking for. They should have a bunch from some of the festival’s biggest guest authors.
Information: www.emirateslitfest.com
Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
Sri Lanka's T20I squad
Thisara Perera (captain), Dilshan Munaweera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ashan Priyanjan, Mahela Udawatte, Dasun Shanaka, Sachith Pathirana, Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Gamage, Seekkuge Prasanna, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Chathuranga de Silva.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
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