Thiruvananthapuram: A high level of literacy in Kerala appears to have had little impact on gender equality in the state, with yet another case of dowry demand being reported from the state capital this week.
While dowry-related incidents often lead to physical and mental abuse of the bride, in the latest incident, a groom has landed in police custody.
The family of 30-year-old groom M. Pranav demanded that the car that was promised as dowry be delivered on the day of the wedding itself.
The incident was reported from Koithurkonam near Pothencode in the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram.
The demand came even as the wedding ceremony and the traditional family visits to each other’s homes were under way.
On reaching the groom’s house, where she was reminded about the car to be given as dowry, the bride told the groom’s family that the car was indeed at her home, and that it was not brought to the bridegroom’s house because his house did not have parking space for the car.
The bridegroom’s family then demanded that the bride’s family give them the car keys. When the bride passed on this demand to her family, her family members were enraged by the demand.
Members of the two families then came to blows over the matter, and following a complaint by the bride’s family, police took Pranav into custody.
Cases have also been registered against Pranav’s brother and father. The bride’s family later took her back to their home in neighbouring Kollam district.
Over a decade ago, the state notified the Kerala Dowry Prohibition Rules, 2004 in supersession of the previous Kerala Dowry Prohibition Rules, 1992, but dowry-related harassments and deaths continue to be reported from the state.
