Dowry Demands and Fragile Masculinity Fuel Deadly Attacks on Indian Women

According to the latest data, India is facing a severe crisis of violence against women, with over 4.45 lakh crimes reported in 2022 - roughly 51 violent incidents every hour, or one every 72 seconds. Dowry deaths alone averaged nearly 18 per day in 2022, a "societal emergency" that has failed to provoke sustained outrage.

The problem is not individual pathology, but rather a systemic issue rooted in patriarchal entitlement. Violence against women is not accidental or spontaneous, but "structural, patterned, and legitimised through custom, silence, and legal delay." Each case is a window into the deeper themes of dowry as entitlement, male fragility when confronted with women's independence, and the chilling normalisation of such atrocities.

The recent case of Nikki Bhati, who was dragged by her hair, assaulted, and set ablaze by her in-laws in front of her young son, exemplifies this pattern. Her father alleges years of harassment over dowry demands, revealing how compliance offers no protection - women's lives are collateral, their worth reduced to payments, and their autonomy intolerable.

This violence is not confined to the domestic sphere, as women who step into public arenas and claim independence are also targeted. The public response often shifts the narrative away from accountability, scrutinising the victims' choices instead of addressing the structural patterns of violence. This hierarchy of violence, where men's suffering is amplified while women's pain is silenced, reflects the deep-rooted patriarchal norms that continue to plague Indian society.

Real change demands a societal reckoning, a refusal to absorb horror into routine, and an unwavering commitment to justice, accountability, and equality. Anything less is complicity in the ongoing crisis of violence against women in India.