Indian husband arrested for setting temperature too low under section 498A

Ramesh Tiwari, a software engineer living in Boulder - CO, has been arrested by the Indian police on charges of harassment under section 498A. Mr. Tiwari got married to Ms. Nisha Nagpur in 2004 and they started living as a married couple in Boulder from then on. Ms. Nagpur has filed a complaint in March 2006 claiming that her husband has been harassing her. Ms. Nagpur said, “Ramesh sets the temperature of the house to 69F even in the winter. It gets cold at night and he has a tendency to hog the comforter. I have tried using a higher thread count comforter but to no avail. I had warned him a couple times that I get cold at night and he usually suggests spooning as an alternative. I mean there is a limit to what one can take in terms of mental abuse and Ramesh has crossed it. The worst part of the episode is that I told the same to his mother but she conveniently claimed ignorance of whole Heating the house and translating the Fahrenheit into Celsius concept.”

Unlike many other women who consistently get abused by their husbands Ms. Nagpur came back to India and sought the help of a women’s liberation organization led by Ms. Jhansi Gandthode. Ms. Gandthode advised Nisha to file a case under section 498A against Mr. Tiwari and any other alleged perpetrators. Ms. Gandthode in a public statement said, “I’m a firm supporter of equality of genders. The horrendous acts of Ramesh have caused a lot of grief to my sister Nisha. All these men have no idea how difficult it is to sleep well at 69 F and that too with a low thread count comforter. Moreover Nisha’s husband made her watch a 35” TV while he could afford to buy a 55” and because of this Nisha now strains her eyes whenever she watches TV in general. This man is a monster and has to be taken down.”

Ms. Nagpur had filed a complaint to the police accusing Mr. Tiwari and his mother of harassing her mentally under section 498A. Section 498A of the Indian penal code was structured to protect women against abuse and has the following caveats:

01. The accused (This case the husband) is guilty until proven innocent.
02. The woman can file a complaint without any evidence as her statement is considered as evidence.
03. The woman can name accomplices in the crime and they will automatically be considered guilty until proven innocent.
04. The arrest is non-bailable
05. The woman cannot be prosecuted for perjury or sued for libel incase she is proven wrong.

Nirmala Tiwari, the octogenarian mother of Ramesh Tiwari, was taken in custody the next day. This prompt action was hailed by a number of women’s groups who are also demanding that the Indian government sign extradition treaties with other countries so that criminals like Ramesh Tiwari can be brought to justice quickly. Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi promised the public that he would have treaties with most countries by the end of 2007. When asked by reporters if he was working towards extraditing Dawood Ibrahim from the Middle East, Mr. Ravi said, “Dawood is a secondary issue. I cannot standby and watch an Indian bahu being abused. For heaven’s sake she had to use a 128 thread count comforter and don’t you feel bad for the woman?”

Fortunately Ms. Nagpur did not have to wait for this treaty to be signed as Mr. Tiwari came to India upon hearing the news that his mother had been arrested. Ms. Gandthode accompanied the police who quickly made the arrest. The Indian media in one voice applauded the police and justice system for being prompt and fair. Ms. Arundathi Roy, a popular political activist, said, “This is great day for all the women of this great country but please keep in mind there are millions of Indian men living abroad. Let us hope that this animal called Ramesh Tiwari gets the death penalty so that it can serve as a lesson for others. 69 degrees is too cold.” According to legal pundits, Mr. Tiwari would most likely be given at least 8 years of imprisonment. Meanwhile protests against article 498A and the legality of the section silenced quickly as some of the protestors were booked under
498A.

Peace
PS: The law does exist and rules are as I mentioned above – well as far as my reading goes. Click on the title link to go to one of the 498A websites and follow the links for further reading.