Educational level of a society is no indicator for the rising number of domestic violence against woman. Here, women face greater restrictions on mobility, usually have less to eat than their male counterparts, are denied proper education and healthcare, and are often forced into early marriages. They have fewer opportunities for employment, and are underrepresented in government. According to statistics, a woman is raped in India every 20 minutes. But even the most violent crimes committed against women are rarely reported and perpetrators often go unpunished. At the same time, broad community awareness of violence against women is low. As a result, many such crimes continue with impunity. Emotional abuse has been gaining more and more recognition in recent years as an incredibly common form of domestic violence within the precincts of a home throughout developing nations such as India. Psychological abuse can erode a woman’s sense of self-worth and can be incredibly harmful to overall mental and physical wellbeing. Psychological abuse can include harassment, threats, verbal abuse such as name-calling, degradation and blaming; stalking; and isolation. Women who experience domestic violence overwhelmingly tend to have greater overall emotional distress, as well as disturbingly high occurrences of suicidal thoughts and attempts. Jammu and Kashmir has seen an alarming rise in domestic violence. Studies reveal that domestic violence is a serious human rights threat to women in every society, rich or poor, developed or under-developed, young or old, irrespective of caste, creed, class and educational levels. The increase in numbers of suicide cases by women were also attributed to domestic violence.
