Dowry (jahez or daj) is a term that is difficult to define in the contemporary context of our society, despite its long history across different regions of the world, including the Indian subcontinent. Historians have presented many conflicting views regarding the concept of dowry in antiquity and in later centuries. Studies show that the pre-colonial concept of dowry in Punjab was significantly different from what it is today.

At that time, dowry was understood in Punjab, and in many parts of the world, as a conjugal fund or a transfer of parental property to a daughter at the time of marriage rather than after the owner's death. The purpose was to provide a safety net for a woman in the event of her husband's death or, in the case of a negligent husband, to provide for both the woman and her children. The property remained in the woman's name and was intended to continue as her own. At that time, this was not regarded as a social problem; rather, it existed to support women and served as a marker of their social status.

The practice was also more common among families seeking to prevent land from being divided among different households, while still ensuring that a woman received her share of the family's wealth at the time of marriage. This arrangement, however, carried its own tensions and biases. Even then, rulers such as Akbar and Aurangzeb discouraged the practice of extravagant dowries.

This practice gradually shifted from an optional and independent custom to a coercive and institutionalised demand during the colonial era. The colonisers sought certainty in law and customary practice, leading them to enforce the Brahma rule for all Hindu marriages, even though it had not been practised uniformly across all castes or religions. The practice of dowry was prevalent and most common among the Brahmans of the region.........

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