Marriage as an institution has always been considered sacred in India. Marriage gave legitimacy to the sexual union of two people. However, marriage is not just about sexual union of two people, it often functions as an economic transaction. With time the definition of marriage is changing. Now, marriage acts as a guarantee for long term commitment and companionship. However, we can see a drop in marriage rates and an increase in divorce rates in India. With the increase in divorce rates, more and more people are becoming aware about alimony. However, alimony, which acts as a safeguard is now being hated by many men in India. To find out the reason behind this, we have to first look into the reason behind increasing divorce rates.
Divorce Rates in India
Indians often take pride in low divorce rates. It is an idea amongst a lot of people that low divorce rates indicate more belief in traditional values. However, one of the major reasons behind low divorce rates in India that people usually ignore, is the fact that a lot of women do not have the opportunity to walk out of marriage. This means that a lot of women put up with abuse and domestic violence. Women are often shamed if they opt for a divorce. Even in the 21st century, divorce is seen as a taboo. One of the other reasons behind women stuck in abusive marriages is financial dependency. The number of women who join the workforce in India is still not very high. This means that a lot of women are without salaried jobs, which makes them financially dependent on their husbands. A divorce may result in the loss of the financial dependency. However, we can see a shift in these trends. Nowadays, as more women are joining the workforce, they are finding themselves financially independent. Along with that we see a growth of individualism and the rise of child free mindset. This means that less and less women are wishing to get married. The financial independence that women are gaining is helping them to walk out of a marriage. Since, people no longer believe the traditional definition of marriage, and rather believe that companionship and love should define marriage; the non-fulfilment of these conditions is leading to an increase in divorce rates.
Alimony as a Safeguard
Alimony, also known as spousal support, acts as a financial safeguard for the dependent spouse. Often it is paid until the dependent spouse remarries or dies. It acts as a safeguard, as it is difficult for the dependent spouse to sustain himself/herself, since he/she does not have any source of income. In India both men and women can claim alimony. However, in India, women are the ones who claim alimony. Since a lot of women are financially dependent on their husbands, a divorce without alimony might threaten their sustenance. Alimony laws are made to protect the dependent spouse from plunging into poverty.
Why do Indian Men Hate Alimony Laws?
There has been a surge of men’s rights activists who are advocating for scraping the alimony laws after the suicide of Atul Subash. Alimony laws though gender neutral may appear biased towards women as they get alimony more often than men. However, the reason behind this is not biases rather the low participation of women in the workforce and high numbers of women who are dependents. Many men’s rights activists in India are against alimony laws as they think those are unfair and unjust. A prime example can be seen amongst men on social media who claim that alimony laws only benefit women. However, a lot of men lack the awareness that alimony laws are gender neutral in India. Many men are oblivious of the fact that alimony is paid to the dependent spouse and both men and women can get financial assistance through alimony. Even in situations where both the partners are earning, the financially weaker spouse is eligible for alimony. Since, a lot of women are dependent and hence get alimony after the divorce, it creates the illusion that alimony laws are gender biased. In the case where both the spouses are earning, we often see women earning less than their partners. In India, families often want a woman who earns less than the man. Oftentimes men choose women who earn significantly less than them to satisfy their masculine ego.
The rage of men due to an unfair extortion of money by the wife from the husband is understandable. However, it can’t lead to scrapping an entire law which safeguards a lot of women (and men in some cases). The unfairness that a lot of people are perceiving is due to the existing social conditions, the stereotypical mindset and the traditional gender roles. The activism that we are seeing these days is due to the half-truths that are being fed to the people, who do not look beyond the surface level and systematically overlook the real reason behind these cases.
Divorce Rates in India
Indians often take pride in low divorce rates. It is an idea amongst a lot of people that low divorce rates indicate more belief in traditional values. However, one of the major reasons behind low divorce rates in India that people usually ignore, is the fact that a lot of women do not have the opportunity to walk out of marriage. This means that a lot of women put up with abuse and domestic violence. Women are often shamed if they opt for a divorce. Even in the 21st century, divorce is seen as a taboo. One of the other reasons behind women stuck in abusive marriages is financial dependency. The number of women who join the workforce in India is still not very high. This means that a lot of women are without salaried jobs, which makes them financially dependent on their husbands. A divorce may result in the loss of the financial dependency. However, we can see a shift in these trends. Nowadays, as more women are joining the workforce, they are finding themselves financially independent. Along with that we see a growth of individualism and the rise of child free mindset. This means that less and less women are wishing to get married. The financial independence that women are gaining is helping them to walk out of a marriage. Since, people no longer believe the traditional definition of marriage, and rather believe that companionship and love should define marriage; the non-fulfilment of these conditions is leading to an increase in divorce rates.
Alimony as a Safeguard
Alimony, also known as spousal support, acts as a financial safeguard for the dependent spouse. Often it is paid until the dependent spouse remarries or dies. It acts as a safeguard, as it is difficult for the dependent spouse to sustain himself/herself, since he/she does not have any source of income. In India both men and women can claim alimony. However, in India, women are the ones who claim alimony. Since a lot of women are financially dependent on their husbands, a divorce without alimony might threaten their sustenance. Alimony laws are made to protect the dependent spouse from plunging into poverty.
Why do Indian Men Hate Alimony Laws?
There has been a surge of men’s rights activists who are advocating for scraping the alimony laws after the suicide of Atul Subash. Alimony laws though gender neutral may appear biased towards women as they get alimony more often than men. However, the reason behind this is not biases rather the low participation of women in the workforce and high numbers of women who are dependents. Many men’s rights activists in India are against alimony laws as they think those are unfair and unjust. A prime example can be seen amongst men on social media who claim that alimony laws only benefit women. However, a lot of men lack the awareness that alimony laws are gender neutral in India. Many men are oblivious of the fact that alimony is paid to the dependent spouse and both men and women can get financial assistance through alimony. Even in situations where both the partners are earning, the financially weaker spouse is eligible for alimony. Since, a lot of women are dependent and hence get alimony after the divorce, it creates the illusion that alimony laws are gender biased. In the case where both the spouses are earning, we often see women earning less than their partners. In India, families often want a woman who earns less than the man. Oftentimes men choose women who earn significantly less than them to satisfy their masculine ego.
The rage of men due to an unfair extortion of money by the wife from the husband is understandable. However, it can’t lead to scrapping an entire law which safeguards a lot of women (and men in some cases). The unfairness that a lot of people are perceiving is due to the existing social conditions, the stereotypical mindset and the traditional gender roles. The activism that we are seeing these days is due to the half-truths that are being fed to the people, who do not look beyond the surface level and systematically overlook the real reason behind these cases.
