Page 58 - Banking Finance June 2024

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legal document outlining the specifics of streedhan and its law has provisions for protecting her interests. "If a woman
management," says Razvi. entrusts dominion over her streedhan property to her
husband, or to any family member, and it is not returned to
Rai advises women to stay informed about their legal rights her, the woman can make out an offence for 'Punishment
and seek legal advice if required. for Criminal Breach of Trust' under Section 406 of the Indian
Penal Code, 1860. This can result in imprisonment of up to
Families, too, need to be vigilant three years, a fine, or both," says Akhilesh Wahal, partner
The husband's family also needs to take a few steps to at Syal & Co.
safeguard its interests. When gifting jewellery to a woman,
provide the bills and receipts, including descriptions and What happens in court?
weights of items purchased. "This ensures clarity of intention
for both the husband and the family, which the woman may In case of disagreement, a husband might have to prove that
also appreciate," says Pratibha Bangera, a lawyer at the the wife is falsely claiming property as streedhan. "Typically,
Bombay High Court. the responsibility of proving ownership of the streedhan
usually lies with the woman asserting her claim," says
The boy's family must take such precautions because there Bangera.
have been instances of harassment through false claims
about streedhan. "Fake jewellery lists are being used to In other religions, too, similar provisions exist for protecting
harass and extort from husbands by threatening to file a women's assets or gifts received at the time of marriage.
criminal complaint," says Bangera. "In Islamic law, there are provisions for mehr (dower) given
by the husband to the wife at the time of marriage, which
Legal recourse for women serves as her financial security," says Razvi. (Business
If a husband or his family usurps a woman's streedhan, the Standard)

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Tribunal, which deals exclusively with environmental of enforcing a right to be free from the adverse effects of
matters, is the main forum for such cases but petitions climate change. Court interventions can be useful in matters
routinely land in High Courts and the Supreme Court as well. relating to air or water pollution, or forest or wildlife
However, petitions referring to, or seeking recourse from, conservation. But climate change is a very different beast.
the broader problem of climate change, are rare. The It is a multi-dimensional problem that cannot be tackled
supreme court' s order on climate change is almost certain through any single or a small set of interventions.
to change that. Minimising the impacts of climate change is beyond the
"What the recent Supreme Court decision has done is to capability of any single local, regional or national
reinforce the critical nature of climate change, and that government.
would potentially pave the way for a new jurisprudence Shibani Ghosh, a Supreme Court advocate and visiting fellow
where people, socio-economic development, nature and at Sustainable Futures Collaborative (an independent
climate are equally prioritised," Bharat Jairaj, who leads research organisation), said that for these reasons, the
India's Energy program at the World Resources Institute, courts might not be as activist on climate change as they
said. are on some other environmental issues, and use a "hands-
However, the effectiveness of court rulings on climate off approach" in climate cases in the future. (The Indian
change remains a big question mark, particularly in the case Express)

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