HYDERABAD: A majority of women prisoners, who were lodged at Chanchalguda prison, are there due to dowry-related crime cases, finds a survey conducted by a scholar of the Department of Sociology of Kakatiya University, Warangal.
The study is titled "Socio-Demographic, Economic and Crime Profile of Women Prisons - A Sociological Study of Chanchalguda Prison, Hyderabad". In this study, surveyors obtained responses from 217 women prisoners which, revealed that 61.29 per cent of them were imprisoned due to dowry-related murder cases.
The study found that 96 per cent of them were below the monthly income of Rs 10,000. The inmates told the researchers that due to their low economic conditions they had forced their daughters-in-law to bring dowries. They demanded dowry to start a business or buy some land for survival.
It was found that lack of education is one of the key factors for criminogenic behaviour amongst the inmates. Most of the women offenders were not professionally educated and prone to commit crimes to make money.
Astonishingly, 72.35 per cent of women prisoners were illiterate, and 25.79 per cent studied less than class 10. Due to a low economic condition sometimes they get sexually abused, the study pointed out. "Our interaction with those prisoners revealed that most of them were not in a position to get a lawyer because of financial crises. They have no other option but to depend on government lawyers for justice," said Dr A Ramesh, the researcher.