In a historical move, the Minister of religious affairs of Pakistan has announced a ban on the curse of dowry. Dowry Banned in Pakistan is like achieving the social goal of making the nation more socially responsible. The curse is a big hindrance to the marriages of daughters from the middle, lower middle classes, and poor families. They will have a sigh of relief if the implementation of the law goes in its true spirit.

What is Dowry?

Dowry! This word comes with a history of making and breaking a girl’s life in South East Asian countries of the subcontinent. It plays a decisive factor in the acceptance of girls as brides. A big pile of costly dowry means a brighter chance of marrying a socially respectable groom. Many girls straightaway face rejection due to a lack of capacity to offer a dowry. 

Social Impact

The dowry is a deep-rooted social curse in our part of the world. It is a tradition of demanding household and luxury stuff from a girl’s parents while tying the marriage knot. Undoubtedly this tradition has been putting financial pressures on have-nots for ages. The girl is compelled to suffer a crisis of existence as her value is determined by the materials she brings along.

Parents heavily suffer if they can’t arrange the demanded stuff. In the worst cases, girls try to get rid of marriage by choosing the path of suicide. It helps them uplift the dowry burden from the fragile shoulders of their family. Some of the brides are even murdered by their in-laws, because of not bringing with them the hefty dowry.

It is insensitive of society to remain silent against the curse of dowry as countless families can not earn the worth of bucks to support their living. Where to get money for a container load of dowry is a question they can not find the answer to. 

Banning the Curse

There is a climax to everything and then a full stop. The year 2020 had many ups and downs bringing happy news for the girls waiting for marriages. Along with a few other steps in the right direction, the regime of Prime Minister Imran Khan has decided to ban the dowry in Pakistan. That describes that a family of a groom cannot ask for a dowry now from the bride’s parents. 

Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs decided to ban the tradition of dowry. However, the new law does not entail a complete prohibition of dowry in the country. As per the new law, the allowed dowry will be just clothes for the bride only. Other gifts can only be bedsheets.

The groom’s side has to return all the gifts and dowry to the girl if the marriage ends up in divorce. Before the dowry was banned in Pakistan, both India and Bangladesh have already outlawed the practice of demanding and accepting dowry.

It is a ray of hope for the parents looking around to marry their daughters. The lives of many girls in Pakistan can become comfortable if rule of law has any enforcement. It needs an iron-handed implementation in the true spirit of the law.

Photo by Syed Fahim Haider on Unsplash