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November 25, 2009 16:43 PM
Chidambaram Tells Indians To Banish Dowry System
By P. Vijian
NEW DELHI, Nov 25 (Bernama) -- Describing the giving and taking of dowry as "evil", India's Home Minister P. Chidambaram said the practice that cuts across all strata of Indian society should be banished.
"We can't live in denial, evil of dowry is in our society. It is prevalent in all strata - poor, middle class and the rich," Chidambaram said on Wednesday.
Addressing about 500 young schoolgirls while launching the "Daughters Against Dowry" campaign in New Delhi, he equated child marriages and the practice of giving dowry as two social evils that continued to blight Indian society.
"Child marriage still exists today. It is celebrated with pomp and pageantry in states like Rajasthan, but that is dying down in India now. But the giving and taking of dowry continues to flourish," he noted.
Despite stringent anti-dowry laws and massive social awareness campaigns, the practice of dowry during marriages is common and dowry-related crimes have also multiplied, and women often fall victim.
According to the Indian National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), over 5,000 dowry death cases are reported annually but social activists claim many cases also go unreported both in the rural and urban areas.
Chidambaram said most of the dowry cases took place in arranged marriages which were still common in India.
The minister urged students to use new communication technologies like the Internet, Facebook and Twitter to spread awareness against the age-old dowry system.
The campaign was organised by India's Ministry of Women and Child Development in conjunction with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women that falls today.
-- BERNAMA
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