Marriages, as the adage goes, are made in heaven. Inherent in this is an acknowledgement of the sanctity that the institution of marriage holds. But times are changing. Not just Western societies but those in Asia too are now increasingly seeing the spectacle of live-in relationships. This is legally accepted by courts in India through a series of judgments since 2006. Yet, fact is that live-in relations are not wide-spread. The positive side of this is its care-free nature. For, pregnancy and parenting are optional or rare among them. They live in their todays. Such relationships accord the freedom to both man and woman to separate and go their ways generally without legal hassles. The negative sides are there too. The brutal murder of Shraddha Walkar in Mehrauli, Delhi, is a case in point. The murder of the 28-year-old woman and the chopping of her body into 35 pieces allegedly by live-in partner Aftab Poonawalla, was among the worst horror-stories of our times. It would, however, be naïve to expect that the youth would “see reason” and avoid live-in relationships. Rather, the trend is steadily rising.
Societies evolve. What does not change or remains stagnant has a tendency to rot. A new society frames its mind by virtue of the influences from its surroundings; while the surroundings and situations keep changing. Courts are mindful of this, a reason why they refused to stand in the way of live-in-relationships even granted that this is neither advisable nor healthy from the traditional or religious points of view. The wealthy societies in the West had evolved faster than those in Asia or Africa. The institution of marriage was not strong in African countries. In nations like Botswana, live-in relationships are the norm. Marriage is abhorred. The Islamic world zealously follows the institution of marriage; and in a different manner too, depending on individual preferences. Polygamy is widely practised in Islam and there also exists Triple Talaq or similar systems of abrupt divorce at the sweet will of the male partner.
What must be admitted is that the brutal murder of the young woman in Mehrauli is an aberration; just as a similar murder of Nirbhaya by blood-chilling gang-rape. Horrendous, though, such acts keep happening despite the best alerts and laws. Animal instincts are not alien to humans. India is a nation of 1.40 billion. Let us admit the fact that Indian society is less brutal compared to, say, societies in Afghanistan, Iraq or some African countries. Even some of the societies in South East Asia are known for their brutality. But these horror stories are slowly catching up in India too.
