PROTECTION OF WOMEN FROM DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

ACT, 2005

Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act of 2005 came after a lot of struggle
by the women’s organisation and multiple rounds of discussion. The benefit of it was that all
the gaps that created hindrances to delivering justice to women were removed.

The key issues resolved

As we discussed above, it wasn’t easy for the aggrieved women to take legal recourse
because of the difficulties involved in it. To make it easier for the victims to invoke the law,
the new legislation introduced protection officers, who were responsible for assisting women
throughout the legal framework.

Remedies and rights under Protection of Women from Domestic Violence

Act, 2005

Protection order

The protection order is issued under Section 18 of the Act to protect the women from any
further incidents of violence by prohibiting the respondent from contacting, meeting,
committing violence directly or indirectly to the victim, alienating assets, bank lockers and
bank accounts owned jointly or separately by the respondent and any other act that is
prohibited by the protection order.

Breaching a protection order is a cognizable and non-bailable offence under Section 31,
where the respondent may be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term of
up to one year, with a fine that may extend to twenty thousand rupees, or with both.
Residence order

The magistrate may pass a residence order under Section 19 of the Act if he is satisfied that
domestic violence has taken place. The order can include restraining the respondent from
dispossessing or in any other manner disturbing the possession of the aggrieved person from
the shared household, entering into the portion occupied by the aggrieved person, alienating
or disposing of the shared household or encumbering the same, renouncing his rights in the
shared household, and directing the respondent to remove himself from the shared household
or arrange alternative accommodation for the aggrieved person.

Apart from the instructions mentioned above, the magistrate, under the same section, can also
pass other orders and directions to the police officers and respondent to ensure the safety of
the aggrieved women.

Custody order

The magistrate can grant temporary custody of children under Section 21 of the Act to the
aggrieved during the hearing of the application and can specify, if necessary, the
arrangements for the visit of such children by the respondent. Provided that if the magistrate
is of the opinion that any visit of the respondent may be harmful to the interests of the child
or children, the magistrate shall refuse to allow such a visit.

Compensation order

The magistrate can order the respondent under Section 22 of the Act, on an application made
by the aggrieved person, to pay compensation and damages for the injuries, including mental
torment and emotional distress, caused by the act of domestic violence committed by that
respondent.

Section 20 of the Act provides for the provision of monetary relief under which the
magistrate can direct the respondent, while disposing of the application under Section
12 subsection (1), to pay monetary relief to meet the expenses incurred and losses suffered by
the aggrieved person and any child of the aggrieved person as a result of the domestic
violence and such relief may also include other expenses. This provision is also backed by a
remedy wherein if the respondent fails to provide the monetary relief, then the magistrate
may direct the employer or a debtor of the respondent to directly pay to the aggrieved person
or to deposit with the court a portion of the wages, salaries or debt due to or accrued to the
credit of the respondent.

Section 17 of the Act protects women from being dispossessed of the house by giving them
the right to reside in the shared household, whether or not she has any right, title or beneficial
interest in the same.

What does Domestic Violence mean?

 It can be termed as Domestic violence in case it harms or injures or endangers the

health, safety, life, limb or well-being, whether mental or physical, of the aggrieved
person or tends to do so and includes causing physical abuse, sexual abuse, verbal and
emotional abuse and economic abuse.

 The Act recognizes domestic violence as a human rights violation.

 It recognises a woman’s right to live in a violence-free home.

 To realize this right, the Act recognises a woman’s right to residence and her right to
obtain protection orders under the law.

Types of Domestic Violence:

Under this Act, domestic violence includes the following:

1. Physical abuse – It means any act or conduct which is of such a nature as to cause
bodily pain, harm, or danger to life, limb, or health or impair the health or
development of the aggrieved person and includes assault, criminal intimidation and
criminal force.

2. Sexual abuse – It includes any conduct of a sexual nature that abuses, humiliates,
degrades or otherwise violates the dignity of a woman.

3. Verbal and emotional abuse – It includes

 Insults, ridicule, humiliation, name-calling and insults or ridicule especially

with regard to not having a child or a male child; and
  Repeated threats to cause physical pain to any person in whom the aggrieved
person is interested.

4. Economic abuse – It includes activities such as not providing money for maintaining
the woman or her children, not providing food, clothes, medicines, etc., deprivation of
all or any economic or financial resources, forcing the woman out of the house,
preventing from accessing or using any part of the house, preventing or obstructing
one from carrying on employment, etc.,

Salient Features of Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005

(PWDVA)

 Recognising that a woman requires assistance with legal procedures and other forms
of support, the PWDVA allows for the appointment of Protection Officers, and
recognises the role of Service Providers in providing medical, shelter, legal,
counselling and other kinds of support services.

 It is a law in response to the needs of the woman.

 It has certain crossovers from civil to criminal law – so when the protection order or
Magistrate’s order is violated, the criminal law will start.

 The shelter homes and the medical facility are under a legal obligation to provide
shelter or medical facility to the aggrieved person.

 The Act does not make any changes in the existing personal law regime on family
matters.

 The reliefs under the Act are in addition to existing laws and have been recognised
with the objective of empowering a woman to tide over an emergency situation.

 Having obtained relief under the law, a woman can still go for relief under other laws
later.

 The Act includes provisions for making Domestic Incident Reports, which will
serve as important records at the stage of evidence taking.

 The manner in which the applications for orders under the Act have also been
mentioned in the Act.

 Finally, the Act provides that the breach of an order obtained is a criminal offence.
Role of Government

The Central Government and every State Government, shall take all measures to ensure that:

 The provisions of this Act are given wide publicity through public media including
television, radio and print media at regular intervals.

 The Central Government and State Government officers, including the police officers
and the members of the judicial services, are given periodic sensitisation and
awareness training on the issue addressed by this Act.

 Effective coordination between the services provided by concerned Ministries and

Departments dealing with law, home affairs including law and order, health and
human resources to address issues of domestic violence are established and periodical
review of the same is conducted.

 Protocols for the various Ministries concerned with the delivery of services to women
under this Act, including the courts, are prepared and put in place.