Businessman Rajesh Varkharia thought he was waging a lonely legal battle till a chance meeting with two other dowry accused at the Bangalore trial court."I was totally in the dark. I would just sign where the lawyer asked me to," he says, describing his five days in prison as an accused under the section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, the dowry harassment act.Varkharia and three others started Save Indian Family Foundation ( SIFF ) in 2005 to offer legal advice and assistance to men who say they have been falsely accused of demanding dowry. A decade later, the four-member NGO has over 50 chapters across the country.Vakharia claims that every week the group adds over 30 members, many of whom are between 32 and 35 years of age.The fact that men are suffering from the "misuse" of 498A is gaining traction. So much so that the courts and the government are sitting up and taking notice.Earlier this year, the home ministry proposed amendments in the anti-dowry act on the grounds that false cases were as high as 9%. (See box).The move is to make offences of dowry demand and cruelty by husband and in-laws compoundable. (But, in Parliament, minister of state for home affairs Haribhai Parthibhai Chadhary has also added that "there is no direct evidence or study available to suggest that this (section 498A of IPC) is one of the most abused laws in the country".)The Supreme Court too, in successive judgments, has sought to dull the provision for the immediate arrest of the husband's family. In 2005, the SC described the section as "legal terrorism." And in a controversial June 2014 judgement, the SC restrained the police from mechanically arresting the husband and his relatives on the mere lodging of a complaint under section 498A of the IPC.Citing very low conviction rate, the SC directed the state governments to instruct police "to satisfy themselves about the necessity for arrest under the parameters (check list) provided under Section 41 of criminal procedure code".Both the Law Commission and the Justice Malimath Committee on Criminal Justice Reform have held that the section should be made compoundable and bailable.Men rights groups like SIFF argue that law doesn't really protect women as it claims. "Is it just the wife who needs protection? What about the mother-in-law, sister-in law or women relatives of the husband? Why must they suffer?" asks Vakharia.However, women rights lawyers say that the focus should not be the law but its implementation. "Every law is misused and there is a section of society that will misuse every kind of legal provision. Should we revoke the whole lot of them," asks a lawyer.They also underline the need for police reforms. "Women are often unaware of the provisions of laws that protect them against dowry harassment or domestic violence, it is the police that might mislead them," says an activist.