Unit 2 of Law Relating to Women and Children (syllabus: Module II — the PCPNDT Act 1994 and the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act 1971; the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act 1986; the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act 2013; the Dowry Prohibition Act 1961; the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005; the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956; the Maternity Benefit Act 1961 and the Factories Act 1948; and the National Commission for Women Act 1990). Below: what the unit covers, the provisions it turns on, and the cases an examiner expects you to name.
What this unit covers
- What exactly does the sex-selection legislation prohibit — a technique, or a purpose?
- Who is protected against sexual harassment at the workplace, and what makes conduct harassment?
- What are the elements of dowry, and which of them decides cases?
- Is the domestic violence legislation a criminal statute, and what is its central innovation?
- What is a daughter's position in the Mitakshara coparcenary, and what was taken away in 2005?
- What are the conditions of a valid Hindu marriage, and where does the discrimination lie?
- On what grounds may a Hindu marriage be dissolved, and do the grounds run both ways?
- Within what limits may a pregnancy lawfully be terminated?
- What does the Maternity Benefit Act 1961 entitle a woman to, and what did the 2017 amendment change?
Treat that list as a self-test: recite each topic's rule from memory before you open its cases.
Provisions
- Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act 1994, s. section 6
- Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, s. sections 2(a), 2(n) and 2(o)
- Dowry Prohibition Act 1961, s. section 2
- Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, s. sections 2(f), 3 and 17, with sections 18 to 23
- Hindu Succession Act 1956, as amended in 2005, s. sections 6 and 14, with sections 23 and 24 omitted
- Hindu Marriage Act 1955, s. sections 5(iii), 7, 8(5) and 18
- Hindu Marriage Act 1955, s. sections 13(1)(ia), 13(1)(ib), 13(2) and 13B
- Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act 1971, as amended in 2021, s. sections 3 and 5
- Maternity Benefit Act 1961, s. ss. 4 and 5, as amended in 2017