Recovery of dowry articles was decreed against the petitioner

The suit for recovery of dowry articles was decreed against the petitioner by the learned Judge Family Court, Gujranwala. The appeal filed by the petitioner was also dismissed by the learned Additional District Judge, Gujranwala,. Hon’ ble High Court dismissed the constitutional petition and observed about Problematic and Crucial social custom as under:- “In Punjab we are confronted with two diverse situations. One, in which the parents are bounded by the cruel custom obliging them to give articles of dowry to their daughters beyond their financial capacity. From the day a girl takes birth, her mother reserves a box for her for depositing whatever the articles of dowry she can stealthily buy for this prospective bride. No receipt regarding the purchase of these articles is prepared or kept. The other is the case of the real wretched and downtrodden class of the people who could not think of preparing the articles of dowry for their daughters at any cost. They are too destitute to do it. The day of their daughters marriage is to be a day of hope and jubilation when they can dream of wearing proper clothes and feeding themselves and their children properly for a couple of days. Definitely all the funds are to flow from the groom, a well-to-do and superannuated man, driving for his second or 3rd marriage” The court further observed: In 99% cases, the plaintiff/wife tells a lie that the list was prepared at the time of marriage. In 01% cases, she still insists that she is not telling a lie. Insistence upon production of the list that was prepared at the time of marriage so as to entitle a plaintiff for a decree for the return of articles of dowry would be pressuring her to tell more lies.

   2013 MLD 939 Lahore