In an important judgment, the Kerala High Court held that a gift given to a bride by her parents at the time of marriage cannot be treated as dowry. A single judge bench had given this decision while hearing a petition. According to information received from sources, the court was hearing the petition filed against the order issued by the Kollam District Dowry Prohibition Officer.
The Dowry Prohibition Officer of Colom District ordered the return of the ornaments gifted to the bride by the bride’s parents. As per the law, gold jewelery gifted by the bride’s parents in their will is not considered dowry. Not only this, the petitioners also argued that the Dowry Prohibition Officer had no right to interfere in the matter and issue orders.
In this regard, Judge Justice MR Anita set aside the order of the Dowry Prohibition Officer as it was not clear whether the officer had inquired into the matter. At the same time, it was not completely clear whether the jewelery was received as a dowry or not. The woman demanded that the gold ornaments she got at the wedding be returned to her, which were kept in a locker of a co-operative bank.