Sources : Google images , Wikipedia

At present if a man files a complaint against a woman for committing offenses like rape, domestic violence, stalking, sexual violence, she goes scot-free as the 158 year old Indian Penal Code (IPC) believes only men can commit such a crime. In this time we are thinking about the protection of women from sexual violence and we have enacted a number of laws for them. What about the protection of males and boys? How can we protect their dignity and respect from the attack of sexual assault and domestic violence?

Indian men facing domestic violence at the hands of wife or female partner is a harsh reality. However, no one including our government has taken any stand on addressing it.In most countries across the globe, the laws against domestic violence provide protection to both men and women. Men can also seek restraining orders from courts, which restrain the abusive partner or wife from perpetrating abuse and even contacting the victim. Whereas in India, family violence against men is almost legal as there is no provision in the law to protect a man, who faces violence from wife or other female family members. There are uncountable cases where a husband has been abused, tortured by wife or female partners in connivance with her own family or relatives or even friends. Many times the violence is so brutal that the husband or the male partner suffers extreme injuries, which results in loss of life. 

Most abused men in India run away from their abusers and apply for divorce, because they are either afraid of losing access to their children or they are afraid of getting implicated in false cases of dowry harassment. They also fear for huge financial losses and long drawn legal process. This could be the prime reason when male suicides rate is much higher than the female suicide rates as 4966 for males and 4049 for females under the various age groups sharing in the category of marriage related issues,love affairs etc. As there is a lot of social stigma towards men abused by women.  Most of the male victims do not come out in open and do not share their ordeal with family, friends or colleagues. Male victims of domestic violence are ridiculed and considered as unmanly. Such thinking is chauvinistic and it is harmful.

Like men, a female partner also tends to bring the stress of the workplace to the home. This is one of the main reasons of domestic violence against men. The other reasons include intolerance and anger at non-fulfilment of expectations. Sometimes, incapability of husband to meet monetary demands of wife also leads to abuse and violence. Male victims of family violence go through low self-esteem and their performance at workplace suffers. Thousands of such men are approaching psychiatrists, who are not of much help, when a law to provide protection to men and restrain the women does not exist.

The surveys conducted throws light on unprovoked violence against men by women is evidence in the face. Notwithstanding the fact that double the numbers of men commit suicide compared to women, it should not be a surprise to ask for a law to protect men as such a law for women already exists. In fact, it would be preposterous in this age of gender equality, not to have such a law. Such a law to protect men from domestic violence would act as relief to millions of those men who feel victimized and left out. It would also provide them with a legal platform to come forward and share their pain and get some semblance of a relief.

By Nishil & Manisha