Team News Riveting
Patna, October 26
Leading women lawyer of Patna High Court and Vice President of Advocates Association Mrs Chhaya Mishra on Thursday regretted poor implementation of the Domestic Violence Prevention Act even after 16 years of its passage.
Talking to media persons here, Mrs Mishra recalled the Bill which was passed by both the Houses of the Parliament became an Act on this day in 2006.
She said the National Commission for Women had received 26513 complaints of domestic violence last year which was 25 per cent more than previous year. She claimed due to covid 19 lock down and subsequent unemployment ,domestic violence cases increased.
According to Mrs Chhaya Mishra, 80 per cent of the cases are in fact not reported to the states women commission or police due to social stigma attached to these events.
According to the findings of the National Health and family welfare department, Karnataka topped the list of cases of domestic violence followed by Bihar. Measures of women empowerment started in different states could not contain domestic violence.
She recalled an order passed by the double bench of Supreme Court in March this year and admitted the implementation of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 was dismal. The Court had asked the union and state governments to discuss the issue by associating the union finance, child and women and home ministry at the Central level and in the states to launch measures for success of the Act. Supreme Court ,she said was rightly concerned over huge pendency (4.7 lakh) of domestic violence related complaints.
Mrs Chhaya Mishra also cautioned about the misuse and abuse of the provisions of the Act to take revenge, harass aged in-laws by the families of the women and suggested appointment of more counsellors and protection officers as the existing number of officers were overburdened and an officer on average looks after 600 cases which is unmanageable..
Till recent years, domestic violence was considered an urban issue but unfortunately now it has percolated to the village levels. Mrs Chhaya Mishra recommended involvement of the women sarpanches in counselling in the villages,
