Safeguarding Children’s Rights in Domestic Violence Cases: A Comparative Analysis of Legal Frameworks in India and Sweden
(2025) SOLM02 20251Department of Sociology of Law
- Abstract
- This thesis examines how legal frameworks and socio-cultural norms interact to shape the protection of children’s rights in domestic violence cases in Sweden and India. The study compares legislative schemes, policy documents, court decisions, and institutional reports using a socio-legal approach grounded in legal pluralism, legal culture, and the distinction between law in books and law in action. It also integrates empirical insights from interviews and surveys conducted in both countries. The aim is not to declare one country better but to examine the distinctions between their legislative frameworks and examine the socio-cultural influence within each jurisdiction.
Findings reveal that while both nations have ratified the UN... (More) - This thesis examines how legal frameworks and socio-cultural norms interact to shape the protection of children’s rights in domestic violence cases in Sweden and India. The study compares legislative schemes, policy documents, court decisions, and institutional reports using a socio-legal approach grounded in legal pluralism, legal culture, and the distinction between law in books and law in action. It also integrates empirical insights from interviews and surveys conducted in both countries. The aim is not to declare one country better but to examine the distinctions between their legislative frameworks and examine the socio-cultural influence within each jurisdiction.
Findings reveal that while both nations have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and established protective legal provisions, significant implementation gaps persist. In Sweden, a child-rights-based legal system is constrained by discretionary practices and adult-centric interpretations. In India, fragmented legislation and cultural resistance to state intervention severely limit legal efficacy, particularly in informal settings. The study highlights that formal law often diverges from lived realities, with professional discretion, institutional norms, and cultural values playing pivotal roles in shaping outcomes.
The thesis contributes to socio-legal scholarship by centring children as active legal subjects, exposing how legal cultures influence enforcement, and demonstrating the value of comparative analysis across divergent legal systems. It argues that effective child protection requires more than legal reform; it demands contextual understanding of how law operates in practice. By combining legal analysis with empirical research, this study offers new insights into the complex interplay between law, culture, and children’s rights in domestic violence contexts. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9196628
- author
- Sharma, Nidhi LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- SOLM02 20251
- year
- 2025
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Child Protection, Domestic Violence, Sociology of Law, Legal Pluralism, Legal Culture, Comparative Law, India, Sweden, Child Rights, Socio-legal Analysis, Policy Frameworks, International Law
- language
- English
- id
- 9196628
- date added to LUP
- 2025-06-23 09:29:42
- date last changed
- 2025-06-23 09:29:42
@misc{9196628,
abstract = {{This thesis examines how legal frameworks and socio-cultural norms interact to shape the protection of children’s rights in domestic violence cases in Sweden and India. The study compares legislative schemes, policy documents, court decisions, and institutional reports using a socio-legal approach grounded in legal pluralism, legal culture, and the distinction between law in books and law in action. It also integrates empirical insights from interviews and surveys conducted in both countries. The aim is not to declare one country better but to examine the distinctions between their legislative frameworks and examine the socio-cultural influence within each jurisdiction.
Findings reveal that while both nations have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and established protective legal provisions, significant implementation gaps persist. In Sweden, a child-rights-based legal system is constrained by discretionary practices and adult-centric interpretations. In India, fragmented legislation and cultural resistance to state intervention severely limit legal efficacy, particularly in informal settings. The study highlights that formal law often diverges from lived realities, with professional discretion, institutional norms, and cultural values playing pivotal roles in shaping outcomes.
The thesis contributes to socio-legal scholarship by centring children as active legal subjects, exposing how legal cultures influence enforcement, and demonstrating the value of comparative analysis across divergent legal systems. It argues that effective child protection requires more than legal reform; it demands contextual understanding of how law operates in practice. By combining legal analysis with empirical research, this study offers new insights into the complex interplay between law, culture, and children’s rights in domestic violence contexts.}},
author = {{Sharma, Nidhi}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Safeguarding Children’s Rights in Domestic Violence Cases: A Comparative Analysis of Legal Frameworks in India and Sweden}},
year = {{2025}},
}