This article has been written by Mr. Mustafa Khan, a 1st year LLB student, at Integral University.
Introduction
The Indian penal code IPC is a crucial legal document that governs the criminal justice system in India. However over the years, there have been concerns about whether the IPC is gender biased, particularly in cases involving crimes against women. While laws such as the Protection of Women from domestic violence act and the sexual harassment of women at Workplace (prevention, prohibition, and Redressal) act have been put in place to protect women’s rights there are also laws that can negatively impact men. In this article we will explore the issue of whether the IPC is gender biased and examine the impact of gender biased laws on both men and women.
General concept
The purpose of laws is to advance society while laws are meant to bring harmony and peace to society they attempt to do so by being gender unbiased and neutral the legislative intent, however, appeared to be different criminal laws particularly the Indian penal code demonstrate that legislators never intended for their legislation to be gender-neutral and the dominant nature of men which labels them as oppressors and perpetrators of physical and sexual offences appear to be the main justification for these laws that oppress women. The penal codes laws appear to have been written with the idea that because men are strong brave people who cannot be subjected to cruelty or torture.
one frequent misperception is that women can never be predators only victims this mindset stems from how one defines offences because even criminal law definitions maintain that modesty is a quality solely associated with women men’s modesty and sexual dignity is not recognized by Indian law for example the IPC definition of rape previously centered solely on penile-vaginal intercourse but following a 2013 revision to the penal code penetration of any item was included.
The IPC has various laws geared explicitly at preserving women’s rights such as those prohibiting rape sexual harassment and domestic abuse nonetheless there are rules that can be detrimental to men some laws aimed at protecting women from assault or harassment for example may presume that males are always the aggressors and women are always the victims this can promote the notion that males are innately aggressive or abusive which can have detrimental implications for men who do not fit these stereotypes
Gender Biased Laws: Indian Penal Code
Rape: A man is claimed to commit rape at the beginning of article 375 of the IPC, which clearly states that only men may be punished and that only women can be deemed victims under this provision. when a man rapes a woman, he is punished in accordance with section 375s guidelines however this is not the case when a man is the victim of a rape by a man or woman if a male rapes a minor girl he will be punished however this is not the case if a woman or man rapes a minor man. A man has consensual sexual relations with a woman There is no way to prove women will. A woman can have consensual sex and still accuse a man of rape. Once a man has promised to marry a woman and they have had sex, he cannot back out. He would be considered a rapist if he did that, according to Indian law. If a woman does the same, she will be protected by the ‘woman empowerment’ shield. There is no minimum age for male consent. Teenage boys will face rape charges if they engage in consensual sex with a girl.
Section 498A: According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 7,946 incidents of dowry harassment were filed in 2019 under Section 498A of the IPC. 1,194 of these cases were judged to be false or unsubstantiated, resulting in the detention of 4,869 persons.
Section 498A offonces non-bailable, non-compoundable, and cognizable in India. The evident objective of these sections is to blame the husband or in-laws, even though they did not cause the death or injury! It has become trendy to claim that all female suicides are the result of dowry abuse. Even if the claim is false, the husband will be tried and assumed guilty until proven innocent. The Indian Supreme Court has declared this violation of the law to constitute legal terrorism.
The Sexual Harassment of women at the Workplace Act, 2013
By virtue of the sexual harassment of women at the workplace (prevention prohibition and redressal) act 2013 India s harassment law protects exclusively women. As a result India continues to lack a legal structure in which a woman can be held accountable tried or convicted for perpetrating any type of sexual violence against a man. When people hear the word sexual harassment they immediately think that the victim is a woman and the perpetrator is a guy. The workplace is one of the most common areas where sexual violence occurs. The sexual harassment act for workplace often known as the vishakha guidelines was enacted expressly to combat sexual violence against women in the workplace. Nevertheless no recourse has been provided for males who are sexually harassed at work. What about guys, though? it is well known that sexual harassment occurs at work for both men and women. Laws have been put in place to protect women from sexual harassment but males have been neglected.
Maintenance
Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Act of 1973 as well as several personal laws of India, provide for ‘Maintenance’. In very few instances the court has taken a lenient stance under India’s personal laws and granted the husband the right to request maintenance from his wife but only in situations where he is unable to support himself due to incapacity brought on by an accident, illness or other disorder he may have. But it is obligatory for a man to provide for maintenance to his wife parents and children whether (legitimate or illegitimate) under section 125. But under section 125 a man is required to support his wife, parents, and children whether legitimate or illegitimate. When it comes to providing assistance to spouses section 125 is considered a gender neutral guideline when it comes to providing maintenance to parents. The impact of these gender inequalities is felt most acutely by males who are insufficient themselves and are required to support their wives and thus suffer inadvertently as a result of the unjust character of the law.
Dowry death
According to Section 304B IPC, the intent of the inclusion of dowry as a crime in India’s penal code was to combat dowry-related harassment, violence, and fatalities. However each year, roughly 10% of dowry cases are untrue. In one of the cases, the defendant once claimed that a conviction under Section 304-B of the IPC could not stand without any allegations of cruelty under Section 498A of the IPC. However, this argument was rejected by the three-judge panel consisting of NV Ramana, CJI, Surya Kant, and Aniruddha Bose, JJ. Men are treated as perpetrators in this section, and only women are considered victims. As we previously noted, every year phoney dowry death instances are also reported, leaving the husband and the husband’s family to deal with them and suffer the consequences. Isn’t it necessary to punish women who make false claims under this section? Regarding this, Section 113B of the Indian Evidence Act presumes that a male is to blame for a woman’s death if he subjected the woman to cruelty or harassment just before she passed away. Even though the husband and family members did not really commit the crime, it indicates their culpability.
There is no arguing that women need protection, but this protection is frequently abused by women across the nation for their own selfish agendas, leading to the prosecution of innocent families.
NCRB data on fake cases
Misuse of Section 498A
The NCRB report states that 111,549 cases in total were filed under 498A in 2020. A total of 16151 cases were closed by the police because they were either untrue, contained factual errors, involved civil disputes, etc. Out of these, 5,520 were closed by the police as being false. Police closed 14.4% of cases because they thought there was no merit in them. 120,306 individuals, 96,497 men and 23,809 women, were imprisoned in compliance with Section 498A last year.
IPC-376 RAPE
In 2020, there were 28,046 rape cases registered in India. Police closed 5,015 cases in total because they were false, comprised mistakes of fact or law, or constituted a civil dispute, among other reasons. In other words, police closed 17% of rape investigations due to a lack of evidence. Last year, 31,103 men and 1,507 women were arrested under this provision for rape-related charges, for a total of 32,610 arrests.
9,713 cases were heard by the courts, and a 39% conviction rate resulted in 3,814 convictions and 5,403 acquittals.
These findings demonstrate that men are impacted by gender bias in the IPC. Reforms are therefore required to guarantee that the law offers both genders equal protection.
Some Supreme Court cases
ARNESH KUMAR V. STATE OF BIHAR[x] (2014)
FACTS
The wife claimed that her in-laws pressured her family for 8 lakh rupees a Maruti car an air conditioner etc. When his wife’s spouse learned of these demands he stood by his mother and vowed to wed someone else. Additionally it was claimed that she was expelled from the marital residence since the dowry requirement was not met. The husband appealed for anticipatory bail before the supreme court refuting these accusations.
JUDGEMENT
Because section 498 a is a cognizable and non bailable violation women usually use it as a weapon rather than a shield to harass their husband and his family according to the court. On falsified allegations this clause can apply to the husband’s sick grandparents and other distant relatives. The court issued regulations stating that an arrest under this clause should take place only after a thorough investigation and reaching a reasonable decision about the authenticity of the complaint. Detention cannot be imposed easily and automatically by the magistrate as a result the accused was granted interim bail by the court.
In the case of Sakshi v. Union of India, the Supreme Court ordered the Indian Law Commission to address the problem of gender-neutral rape laws. In the Sudesh Jhaku v. KC Jhaku case, the court reiterated its preference for a gender-neutral definition of rape in order to support the same viewpoint. As a result, on the Supreme Court’s instructions, In its 172nd report, the Law Commission of India proposed that the definition of rape be altered to a gender-neutral offence in order to protect both men and women against rape.
In Girdhar Gopal v state 1953 cri lj 964 the court made a ruling and provided a broad interpretation of section 354 IPC by ruling that any man or woman who has the required intent to commit the offences under section 354 IPC may do so. Meaning that a woman just like a man has the power to violate another woman’s modesty by employing unlawful force or by engaging in an assault with the required knowledge and intent. The Indian penal code of 1860 has not been focused on creating a statute that identifies and also penalizes any act of employing criminal force or assault done by a man or woman to any male with the goal to outrage his modesty according to a major point made in this case.
How Gender-Biased Laws Affect Men
Gender biased laws can impact men in several ways. First they can perpetuate harmful gender stereotypes. For example certain laws that assume that men are always the aggressors can reinforce the idea that men are inherently violent or abusive. This can have negative consequences for men who do not conform to these stereotypes.
second, gender biased laws can contribute to a culture of impunity when it comes to crimes against men. In some cases men may not receive adequate protection under the law or may be unfairly targeted based on their gender. For example there are certain crimes that are specifically targeted at men such as dowry harassment or false accusations of rape.
Third gender biased laws can impact men’s access to justice. Men who are victims of crimes such as domestic violence or sexual assault may be less likely to come forward or to receive support due to societal expectations and gender stereotypes. In some cases men may also face stigma or ridicule if they report such crimes which can further discourage them from seeking justice.
Misuse of Section 498A: Section 498A of the IPC, which deals with dowry harassment, has been misused by women to file false cases against their husbands and in-laws. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, more than 6,000 men were arrested under this section in 2019, and many of these cases were found to be false.
False allegations of rape: The burden of proof in rape cases is often on the accused which can lead to wrongful convictions and a lack of protection for men who are falsely accused. In recent years there have been several high profile cases where men have been falsely accused of rape such as the cases of tarun tejpal and mahmood farooqui.
Discrimination in custody battles: In custody battles women are often given preference over men even if the father is better suited to take care of the child. This is a clear example of gender bias in the IPC which assumes that women are naturally better caregivers than men.
Lack of protection from sexual harassment: While the sexual harassment of women at workplace (prevention prohibition and redressal) act 2013 provides protection to women from sexual harassment in the workplace men are often left out of this protection. This is a clear example of gender bias in the ipc which assumes that men cannot be victims of sexual harassment.
Discrimination in rape laws: The IPC defines rape as forced sexual intercourse with a woman which means that men cannot be legally recognized as victims of rape. This is a clear example of gender bias in the IPC which assumes that only women can be victims of sexual violence.
Reforms
- Gender Neutral Laws: One of the most significant reforms that can help men in regard to gender biased laws in the IPC is to make the laws gender neutral. This means that the laws should provide equal protection to both men and women and not be based on gender stereotypes.
- False Allegation Laws: Laws should be introduced to penalize false allegations of rape or dowry harassment. This will discourage people from misusing the legal provisions and making false allegations against men.
- Shared Parenting: Laws should be introduced to ensure shared parenting rights in custody battles. This will ensure that fathers get an equal opportunity to take care of their children and the best interests of the child are protected.
- Protection From Sexual Harassment: Laws should be introduced to protect men from sexual harassment at the workplace. This will ensure that men are not subjected to unwanted advances or behaviour at the workplace.
- Reforming Rape Laws: laws should be reformed to recognize men as victims of rape. This will ensure that men who are victims of sexual violence can get legal protection and justice.
- Gender Sensitization: Training programs should be conducted for judges lawyers and law enforcement officials to sensitize them to gender issues and ensure that they do not perpetuate gender stereotypes.
- Protection Of Rights: It is essential to ensure that the rights of men are protected and that they are not discriminated against on the basis of gender. This can be achieved by strengthening the legal framework and ensuring that laws are enforced effectively.
- The National Men’s Commission (Pursh Ayog): The National Commission For Women a statutory body of the Indian government has been created to provide advice to the government on policies that impact women. It is past time for our country to establish a central body for men along the lines of NCW. Men need assistance to combat women’s bogus charges and improper use of the law as statistics demonstrate. A move in the correct direction towards a nation with laws and acts that treat all victims equally and all offenders as criminals regardless of gender is purush ayog or the national men’s commission.
These reforms can go a long way in ensuring that men are not discriminated against and that the law provides equal protection to all genders. It is important to recognize that gender bias in the IPC is a serious issue that needs to be addressed and these reforms can help in achieving this goal.
Conclusion
We should all concur that gender neutrality is the first step towards achieving equality, which is at the core of feminism, and, consequently, establishing Article 14 of the Constitution in its real sense. Gender neutrality, therefore, has little to do with feminism. Instead, it strives to realise the feminist objective of equality! It calls for equal enjoyment by men and women of the opportunities, resources, and rewards associated with socially valued commodities. In India, laws not only end gender discrimination but also give women more influence. The Constitution supports laws that discriminate in favor of women. To abolish prejudice and achieve gender neutrality, however, passing laws and making modifications is not nearly as important as putting them into practice. The first thing to understand is that stereotypes must be eradicated from society. Elders frequently utter phrases like, “You are a man, Men will never cry,” to children. Of course not, which is why only women are subject to the law. It is crucial to realise that sexual harassment has nothing to do with the victim`s gender and is just about imposing power on the other. By adding clauses and sections to The Indian Penal Code that punish such harassment against males, it is urgently necessary to safeguard men from sexual harassment.
The judiciary and legislature must make sure that these rules against sexual harassment are not abused in a way that unfairly accuses men of the violence they purport to have committed.
In addition, the individual (regardless of gender) who falsely accused an innocent person of rape should be thoroughly investigated and held accountable for falsifying the evidence. because doing so will enable the media and society to pinpoint the real guilty party.
Reference
Male Rape: The Emergence of a Social and Legal Issue | SpringerLink
Male Rape and Human Rights (core.ac.uk)
Dangerous silence around male sex abuse in India – Media India Group
Gender Biases In The India Penal Code – Desi Kaanoon
Gender-Bias-in-the-Indian-Penal-Code.pdf (ijlmh.com)
[Legal Article] Gender Biased Laws in India by Avinash Singh & Shatakshi Srivastava (mylawman.co.in)