Dark sides of Khap Panchayats

 

Khap Panchayats, which find their origin from ancient India, are the traditional social institutions engaged in dispute resolution in village communities. They are often idolized by movies which ironically deviates from the ground reality. 

Khaps are most prevalent in the Jat Community of Haryana and Western UP. A Khap is an all-male organization and its leaders are unelected but based on their social clout. A Khap can be based on single caste and single gotra, or single caste and multiple gotras, or multiple castes and multiple gotras. A similar practice has been followed in rural India for centuries.

How evil are Khap panchayat?

There are few Khap panchayats which doesn't hesitate to strip the women naked and torture her publically. As per NCRB 291 honor killings have been sentenced by Khap Panchayat between 2014-16. 

Honor Killings
The Khap verdicts of honor killings came into the limelight in 1991 with the Mehrana Killings when a Jat girl and Jatav boy were executed on the order of a Khap. In 2007, the Manoj-Babli murder was also carried on order of Khap. The perceived dishonor which leads to such decisions include marriage in the same gotra, marriage with another caste person, marriage against the wish of the family, unacceptable sexual behavior etc.

Forced Marriages
Sometimes, forced marriages are done by pressurizing one of the partners who might be an adult or minor. The victim of such marriage undergoes fear, threat, abduction, and torture, sometimes resulting in suicide also.

Caste & economic biases:
Poor and lower caste(especially woman) are victims of this kind of institutions, 

Communalism: 
The seed for the current issues like "Love Jihad" & other interfaith marriage issues were laid by Khap panchayat in the past. 

Top 5 evil rulings by Khap Panchayat that took India back into the medieval dark ages:

1. Ordering rape and naked parade of two women: The Khap Panchayat in Meerut ordered the rape and consequent naked parading of 2 sisters. This was supposed to be punishment for their brother eloping with an upper-caste woman. 

1. Threatening not to have a girl child: Balyan Khap ordered all their subjects not to have a girl baby. He also said that in case a girl was born, they wouldn't allow her to be educated, and so she wouldn't have a mind of her own.

1. Chow Mein and fast foods are the reason for rapes in India: Panchayat claimed that chowmein creates hormone imbalance in our body and hence it contributes to rape. 

1. Reducing the marriage age to 15 for women: Randhir Singh, a senior Khap leader, had once suggested that the minimum age of marriage for girls should be reduced since they have "Physically grown up by the time they're 15."

1. Banning girls from wearing jeans and using the internet to prevent eloping and love jihad: A Khap Panchayat in Shoram village in UP passed a diktat banning women from wearing jeans, using phones, and the internet. This ban was actually passed down in 2014 and affected 46 villages. Later a Khap panchayat in Shamli ordered the young boys not to wear shorts in public to prevent the same. 

Legislation could be introduced to ban the illegal measures of these institutions, Ms. Mishra said. “But nothing has been done yet because such a step may have political fallout" since it is a vote bank for many political parties.