women

Purush Hakka Sanrakshan Samiti

PHSS

Santosh Shinde

Sangita Nanawar

vice-president

resolution

Mahesh Shinde

one

Feeling harassed by what it calls “pro-women laws” of modern society, a city-based men’s rights’ organisation has passed a slew of resolutions and has said it will urge the government to amend laws in order to make it a level playing field for men andThe), at its all-India summit held in Kolhapur, demanded an amendment to section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that deals with outraging a woman’s modesty, saying it should include a provision on men being molested. The group has also sought compensation for a husband “whose wife has stopped living with him or has left for her parents’ place without seeking his consent”.They have also demanded “men’s vigilance cells” in every district, which would address domestic woes of men. According to the PHSS, these cells would forward complaints to the family court or the Bombay High Court. They have said that they will pressure the state government to make the required amendments at the upcoming winter session of state legislature.“In many cases, women abruptly leave their husbands or stay with their parents, but still file a petition in court demanding compensation or alimony. In such cases, the husband must be granted a special compensation to be paid by either the wife or the government. Moreover, section 125 of the criminal procedure code (CrPC), dealing with maintenance awarded to wives, needs to be amended or a corresponding clause pertaining to men must be added,” said, president of PHSS.Shinde added that a man being humiliated by a woman should also be considered a molestation victim. “Section 354 is applied only when a woman files a complaint. There should be an extension of the law for men’s benefit,” he said.of PHSS and ladies’ representative of the group, said, “We have passed ademanding state and national commissions for men be formed. We also want the formation of a men’s welfare department to disburse free legal aid to men in distress.”of the members of Men’s Rights Association (MRA), said, “There are several incidents in our society which remain unanswered because of the stigma attached to them. For example, a man recently committed suicide in Pimpri. He even left a suicide note talking about how his wife and mother-in-law tortured him. It’s been four days, but the police are yet to file a case. The mentality of our police department is such that they think men never face domestic violence.”Nanawar further added, “We have decided to raise two old resolutions: One demanding that cases filed under Section 498 of the IPC regarding domestic violence be settled within a minimum time period, and the second that permits mothers-in-law to register police complaints, just as daughtersin- law are allowed to do.”