Vicious Circle of Dowry

It often happens that parents will arrange the marriage of their daughters first and then of their sons. But in some families, the marriage of girls will not take place till the sons have got married first because the dowry that the daughter –in –law will bring will be used to marry the daughter. “Dowries brought by sons help the parents to utilize a part of them in their daughter’s marriage.”(S.K. Ghosh, Indian Women Through The Ages, p. 76.)




“An individual who may be against the dowry system is compelled to accept fifty to sixty thousand rupees in cash in dowry only because he has to spend an equal amount in his sister’s or daughter’s marriage. The vicious circle starts and the amount of dowry goes on increasing till it assumes a scandalous proportion.” (Ram
Ahuja, Indian Social System, p. 206)


· False Notion of Social Status
Sometimes people give more dowries just to exhibit their high social and economic status. “Janis and Rajputs for example, spend lakhs of rupees in the marriage of their daughters just to show their higher status or keep their prestige in the society even if they have to borrow money.”


· Desire of the Girl’s Parents
It is the desire of the girl’s parent that “she should live happily with her husband and in-laws and so they think of a rich family even if they have to give heavy dowry. The aim of the bride’s family is that even though they might be poor their daughter should not lead the same life. Therefore, they are tempted to give a heavy dowry to their daughter, so that she is married to a rich man. (C.B. Mamoria, Social Problems and Social Disorganization In India, p. 687.)


· Greed of the Parents of the Boy
Greed means wanting more money, power, food etc, than one really needs or can afford. In some families, when they arrange the marriage of their son they demand dowry to make easy money, because if the bride’s family is unable to give the dowry which is demanded by the bridegroom’s family, they have the easy option of leaving the bride and try to get another girl.


· Other Reasons
1) Dowry is given on parental feelings, concern or sense of obligation for the daughter, so as not to send their daughter empty-handed, as this would be a source of lowered prestige in the in-laws’ family.
2) Women’s craze for gold–ornaments is also one of the causes of dowry transactions, a fast and easy way to get these ornaments through dowry.
3) The black money and unaccounted earnings of the rich class.
4) Dowry is a means of giving the daughter her share in the father’s property.

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