Dowry is a social evil that has been around in the Indian society since the medieval times

In the early days dowry was an institution in which gifts and presents were given to a girl at the time
of her marriage when she was required to leave her parents’ home and join her husband’s
household. But, in course of time, it became a crude institution resulting in female infanticide,
suicide, bride-burning and other indignities and cruelties.

The problem of dowry has become a serious social evil among the upper castes and middle classes
both in towns and villages. The rules of marriage, namely, caste endogamy and clan exogamy, and
anuloma (hypergamy) and pratiloma (hypogamy), have been misinterpreted and misused for
maintaining the dowry system. These rules restrict the choice of mate selection, as marriage takes
place within one’s caste and outside one’s clan.

Further, a girl needs to be married to a boy who belongs to a family with a status higher than that of
her family. This practice of marriage alliance is known as hypergamy or anuloma. When a girl is
married to a boy whose family status is lower than that of the girl’s, it is known as hypogamy or
pratiloma. Thus, anuloma has restricted choice and created a desire to give away a girl through
marriage to a superior family.

A boy becomes a more valued object than a girl. The net result, therefore, is dowry: the giving of
material goods and cash to the parents of the boy at the time of fixing the marriage, at the
performance of marriage and even afterwards on several other occasions. This practice has become
a serious social problem.

English education and white-collar jobs have accentuated the problem of dowry. A boy with good
education and employment becomes much sought after match for a girl. If anything has kept some
pace with wider social and economic changes in India, it is the increase in dowry in terms of cash and
material goods. Whatever new products come to the market, such as motorcycle, car, music system,
DVD player, television, refrigerator, household goods, electrical appliances, clothes, ornaments,
furniture, etc., have become a part of dowry.

If parents of moderate economic standing cannot meet dowry demands, their daughter remains
unmarried; or if they manage to give a dowry, they get into heavy debt. Demands for more dowries
after marriage have become a source of conflict between families of the boy and that of the girl.
When the demands are not met, brides are harassed, tortured, burnt, or they commit suicide.