Simran Kaur’s* marriage to Australian citizen Gagandeep Singh* was short lived.
The couple tied the knot in February 2015 in a lavish ceremony in New Delhi, however, Simran claims her spouse turned out to be an abusive and an aggressive husband.
“He was very aggressive and abusive. I had married a man who was very violent,” she says.
Kaur’s husband abandoned her when she was pregnant with their child.
She claims her husband did not turn up when it was time to sign the birth certificate.
“He didn’t even want to sign the birth certificate. After several calls and requests, he finally signed it.”
Simran reached out to the Indian High Commission and the local Consul General for help and she is not alone.
There has been a spike in the trend of wives of Non-Residential Indians (NRIs) reaching out to the Indian government in distress.
The Times of India reports India’s Ministry of External Affairs has received 765 calls in 200 days this year. That’s three calls per day on an average and more than half of the total number of complaints received in 2017.
Harassment, ill-treatment by the husband and his family, domestic violence and abandonment are amongst the most common complaints.
Two-part lodgement process for partner visas to come into effect in 2021-2022. Source: Getty Images
Brisbane-based Akashika Mohla, who has been working closely with such cases says women and their families are getting carried away by the promise of a life in a foreign land and are falling prey to men and their families using them for dowry.
“Most of these women dream of living abroad and living a good life. They fall for demands of a big fat wedding and give into demands of dowry without realising they are being used. It is unfortunate but many men use this as an opportunity to get money. I have seen many marriages fail and women being abandoned after they refuse to give more money,” she told SBS Hindi.
“In some cases, there are horrendous tales of domestic violence or slavery involved.”
The Indian government is working towards introducing laws to tackle problems in NRI marriages.
The measures being considered include confiscation of property of NRIs who have abandoned their wives, developing a website to issue summons and warrants to absconding men and cancelling the passports.
In July India’s Minister for External Affairs, Sushma Swaraj said the government was hoping to bring this new bill to the parliament soon.
Sushma Swaraj, India's External Affairs Minister Source: Getty Image/ Sergei Bobylev / Contributor
"We are in talks with Law and Home ministry and we hope to bring it up in the next parliamentary session. If not next, all efforts are being made to ensure that a law is in place by the end of this year," she said.
Non-Government Organisation, Manavi recently published a paper stating that Gujarat was home to 12,000 abandoned women in 2004 and approximately 25,000 wives of NRI men were found to be deserted in Punjab in 2007.
This moment is captured during the rituals process in a Indian Hindu wedding. Source: Getty Images
Australia probing ‘dowry abuse’
While India is working towards framing a new law to curb the number of women abandoned by their NRI husbands, the Australian government is looking into the extent of ‘dowry abuse’ which affects many migrant communities in the country.
The government announced a Senate inquiry into dowry abuse in June this year.
Labor MP Julian Hill, who called for the inquiry into this ‘alarming’ practice has said the inquiry will look at links of dowry abuse and Australia's family law and migration systems, family violence, forced marriage, modern-day slavery and mental health outcomes for affected women.
A final report will be submitted back to the Senate on December 6th, 2018.
*Names changed to protect their identities.
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If you need help or information regarding domestic violence, call the Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800 737 732, or visit 1800respect.org.au
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