Women are still forced to occult rituals to alleviate their infertility, which is a scourge for society. Bail request is denied by the Allahabad High Court.

Case detail

Counsel for Applicant: Ritesh Singh, Suresh Singh Counsel for Opposite Party: G.A. Case title – Durvesh vs. State of U.P

A murder suspect who, along with other family members, allegedly tortured his sister-in-law to cruel rites as instructed by a Tantrik for curing her purported infertility was recently granted bail by the Allahabad High Court.

The facts in this instance are alarming, but they also reveal the mindset of men who believe that when a woman hasn’t given birth in a long time, it’s her responsibility alone—not theirs—and that as a result, they should subject her to occult rites. The bench of Justice Saurabh Shyam Shamshery observed that the continuation of such traditions in the twenty-first century is a scourge for society. The accused was denied bail for allegedly performing cruel rites on the deceased, according to a tantrik (co-accused), who said she was repeatedly burned by a hot pinch.

According to the post-mortem report, there were up to 17 ante-mortem injuries, several of which were burn injuries, and the ante-mortem head injury with the lacerated wound was the immediate cause of death. The Court remarked that the applicant and co-accused had a stone-age mentality in that they think occultism may treat female infertility. “The applicant and co-accused still believe in occultism to be a cure for female infertility even before realizing it might be a case of male infertility, is of persons living in stone age and not in the 21st Century, where science has advanced to such a degree that even infertility (of male or of female) may be medically cured,” the Court stated.

According to the High Court, the facts in this case are disturbing and demonstrate how men think that women are to blame, not men, when a woman hasn’t conceived in a long time, and that’s why they must undergo occult rites. The fact that these rituals are still practiced in the twenty-first century is a scourge for civilization.

While reviewing the bail laws, the bench noted that the fundamental principle might be stated succinctly as bail, not jail.The power to issue bail under Section 439 of the Criminal Procedure Code is broad but not unrestricted, and it must be used wisely rather than automatically or arbitrarily.

The High Court stated that “there is absolutely no case for bail at this stage” because the applicant and co-accused “have a mind-set of people living in the stone age and not in the 21st Century, where science has developed to such an extent that even infertility (of male or of female) may be medically cured” even before it was determined that it might be a case of male infertility.

The mind-set of the applicant and co-accused, who continued to consider occultism to be a treatment for female infertility before realizing that it might be a case of male infertility, is that of people living in the Stone Age rather than the 21st century, where science has advanced to the point where even infertility (of either sexes) may be medically treated, there are treatments available

Name: Sarah Garima Tigga, Semester: VI, College: Symbiosis Law School Pune

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