Don't Let Marriage Bury Your Daughters

By Faisal Iqbal Para

parafaisal7@gmail.com

A daughter is born with dreams, raised with love, and nurtured through countless sacrifices. Parents spend years ensuring that she receives the best education, values, and care. They look forward to the day she begins a happy and secure life after marriage. Sadly, for some daughters, that dream turns into a nightmare.

Domestic violence and emotional abuse continue to be serious social concerns in Jammu and Kashmir. Recent reports indicate a worrying rise in the number of domestic violence cases being reported. Whether this reflects an increase in incidents, greater awareness, or more women finding the courage to seek help, every case represents a human life affected by fear, suffering, and injustice.

Marriage is meant to be a sacred bond built on love, trust, mercy, and mutual respect. Instead, some women face humiliation, verbal abuse, physical violence, and emotional torture within the very homes where they expect acceptance and care. Many suffer silently to protect their children or to avoid causing pain to their parents. Tragically, some lose hope altogether, leaving behind grieving families and shattered lives.

More than 1,400 years ago, Islam transformed the status of women at a time when, in some societies, daughters were buried alive. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) declared daughters to be a blessing, commanded kindness towards wives, and emphasized the dignity and rights of women. These teachings remind us that cruelty towards women has no place in Islam or in any civilized society.

The responsibility to bring about change belongs to all of us. Parents must teach their sons that true strength lies in kindness and respect, not in dominance or violence. Husbands should remember that their wives are partners in life, deserving of love, compassion, and honour. Likewise, in-laws should embrace daughters-in-law as members of their own family, treating them with the same affection and respect they would expect for their own daughters.

We must also create an environment where women facing abuse can seek help without fear or shame. Families, neighbours, religious leaders, educators, community elders, and institutions all have a role to play in preventing domestic violence and supporting those who suffer from it. Remaining silent only protects the abuser and prolongs the suffering of the victim.

A society is not judged by the height of its buildings or the strength of its economy, but by the dignity and respect it gives to its women. If we truly value our daughters before marriage, we must continue to value them after marriage.

Let us build homes where daughters are welcomed with love, treated with respect, and protected with compassion. Let no father fear having a daughter, no mother worry about her child's future, and no brother endure the lifelong pain of losing his sister to abuse that could have been prevented.

Protecting our daughters is not only a legal responsibility but also a moral, social, and religious duty. The time to act is now.

(The author is an educator based in Aadipora, Sopore, )