A mother hanged herself in India after a council of elders punished
her family for her suspected extra-marital romance with a lower-caste
man, a local police officer said Wednesday.
The mother-of-four killed herself on Monday as dozens of villagers
gathered outside her house in central Madhya Pradesh state for a party
the council had ordered her family to host as a punishment for the
relationship.
The council, comprising members of the woman's caste, found her
"guilty" last month of having a relationship with a man from the lowest
Dalit caste, previously known as untouchables, in India's deeply
entrenched social hierarchical system.
As well as hosting the drinking party in Tikamgarh district, the
25-year-old was also fined 5,000 rupees ($74) and ordered to attend a
local temple to atone for her "sins", local police officer Maduresh
Pacharui said.
The council, or "panchayat", had earlier sanctioned a social boycott
of the family but changed the penalty after the woman's family pleaded
before the village elders, Pacharui said.
"It seems she was depressed with the events and over her alleged
affair with her husband's co-worker, who is a Dalit. We are
investigating the panchayat's role," he told AFP.
Nobody has been arrested over her death so far, he said.
Panchayats exert enormous influence over rural life, particularly in
northern India, where they act as arbitrators for millions of poor
villagers who do not have access to legal recourse.
Although they carry no legal weight and are unconstitutional, they
can be highly influential and have been blamed for numerous abuses such
as the sanctioning of "honour killings" of couples and raping woman for
defying social traditions.
Branded "kangaroo courts" by critics, they have also been known to
hand down public beatings and heavy fines for perceived crimes.
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