Data from the most recent National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-6 showed that the proportion of married women who reported experiencing spousal violence has nearly doubled in four years.
While 9.8% of married women reported experiencing spousal violence in the 2019-2021 National Health Security Survey, the number rose sharply to 17.7% in the 2023-2024 survey. The latest survey was conducted in Kerala between July and December 2023 and included 13,005 households.
The data also reveal a rural-urban gap. While 15.6% of women in rural areas reported being subjected to violence by their husbands, the corresponding figure in urban areas was higher, at 19.7%. The NFHS defines “spousal violence” as physical or sexual violence.
In contrast, the national rate showed a downward trend, declining from 29.2% to 22.3%, although the overall infection rate remains higher than Kerala’s.
Other southern states such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have also recorded a decline in marital violence, although its overall prevalence remains higher.
The NFHS-6 report also found an increase in the number of women who reported experiencing physical violence during pregnancy. While 0.5% of women surveyed reported such violence in the fifth national survey, the number rose to 1.7% in the last survey.
These results contrast with Kerala’s performance on several key development indicators, including access to electricity, institutional births, and child nutrition, where the state consistently ranks among the best performers in the country. Kerala has also historically performed well in education and health indicators.
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) does not classify cases of spousal violence separately. Instead, such cases are registered under the category of “cruelty by spouse or relatives” under Section 85 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Act. According to the 2024 NCRB report, 27.2% of crimes against women were recorded under this category, the highest among all crime heads, followed by kidnapping and crimes under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act.
The total number of such cases in Kerala decreased marginally from 4,710 in 2023 to 4,458 in 2024. In terms of crime rate per lakh population under this category, Kerala ranked sixth in the country in both the years.
However, experts point out that Kerala has consistently reported higher crime figures due to increased public awareness, improved policing and higher levels of education. The NCRB report for 2024 shows that Kerala recorded the second highest charges rate in the country for crimes against women at 94.1%, after Mizoram and Andhra Pradesh. In 2023, Kerala recorded the highest toll collection rate of 95.6%.
The NFHS findings are also supported by a research paper published in August 2021 based on a study among women in north Kerala. The study, conducted by Jisha MM, Lamia KK, and Sheila P Haveri, and published in the US-based National Library of Medicine, found that 29% of 290 women interviewed had experienced at least one form of violence from their husbands.
Most participants reported experiencing emotional violence, followed by sexual and physical violence. Emotional violence included situations in which husbands failed to respond when their family members insulted their wives. Slapping, reported by 11.28% of respondents, was the most common form of physical violence.
The study also found that women whose husbands consumed alcohol were nearly three times more likely to experience domestic violence than women whose husbands did not drink alcohol.
The study said, “Domestic violence varies according to local social and cultural standards, such as the acceptance of physical violence at the hands of husbands, the level of literacy among women, women’s independence in decision-making, and limited freedom of expression.”
She added that many women are still unaware of their rights or do not know where to seek help, and often fear retaliation for reporting violations. Among its recommendations were improving girls’ education, encouraging women-led self-help groups in rural areas, introducing opportunistic screening for domestic violence in primary health centers and deploying mental health specialists in grassroots health facilities.
However, Kerala Women’s Commission chairperson P Sathidevi said the NFHS’s latest findings were “not alarming”. Instead, she said, it reflects greater confidence among women to report domestic violence.
“Earlier, women were subservient. But with a lot of awareness in society today, coupled with institutional facilities for reporting domestic violence, women are willing to report daily abuse. The idea of silently suffering violence for the sake of their children or family members is dissipating. Women want to stand on their feet and take back their identity,” said Sathidevi, who is also a senior leader of the Communist Party of India.
She said Kerala has developed a strong grassroots mechanism to help women report domestic violence.
“We have ‘jagrata’ committees at the local body level that have anganwadi workers as members. We train them to spread awareness. The women’s committee rewards ‘jagrata’ committees that perform well. There is also a dedicated portal for the women and child welfare department to report domestic violence,” she added.
However, former Director General of Police in Kerala and the state’s first woman IPS officer, R Srelekha, disagreed and said that rising rates of domestic violence were “nothing to be proud of”.
“Police officials and others may defend the statistics saying that women have become more enlightened. But it is undeniable that there is a rise in the number of criminal cases related to domestic violence in the state. It must stop, and prevention is part of police work,” she added.
The former director-general said long-term measures should include reviewing school curricula to teach boys respect for women and develop gender-sensitive behaviour.
She said: “It started when I was in the police force. I don’t know what the situation is now. But it must be encouraged. We must start from childhood,” stressing that societal changes will put an end to crime against women.
