Barmer, Rajasthan:
Traumatised by the diktat of a caste Panchayat, a young couple in Rajasthan's Barmer district have asked the district collector to allow them to end their lives.
The husband-wife have been living together after marrying at an Arya Samaj temple last month. Relatives of the wife Khama, who wanted her to marry someone else, got a caste Panchayat organized, which has ordered the couple to separate and pay a penalty of 5 lakh rupees. The couple however says, instead of separating, they would rather choose to die.
The young couple appeared at the
Jan Sunwayi or public hearing in Barmer. They wanted the Collector to let them end their lives as they were fed up of their caste Panchayat's draconian diktat.
"We got married at an Arya Samaj temple. The Panchayat asked us to separate and pay a fine of for Rs 5 lakh as penalty. They also threatened to kill us," said Chatraram, husband.
Chatraram and his wife Khama were engaged in 2001, but ignoring that commitment Khama's brothers allegedly forced her to marry elsewhere in February this year. Her in-laws allegedly ill-treated her badly but one day she managed to escape. And on 27th March, she got married to Chatraram. But their caste group and even their own family are angry.
"We want to lead a happy married life. But, we are under constant pressure from the Panchayat to separate," said Khama, wife.
Given the huge caste pressures and their inability to pay the penalty, the couple has sought help from the district Collector.
"I have asked the SP to investigate and we will ask the caste Panchayat not to take any action in this matter," said Gaurav Goyal, Collector, Barmer.
An earlier High Court order had declared caste Panchayats as illegal and directed the government to launch criminal proceedings against them, but given the pressures of caste-based politics, they continue to function freely in many parts of Rajasthan.