UP khap panchayat bans women from stepping out... and minister endorses it

The police are in a fix over the whimsical diktat of a ‘khap panchayat’ in a western UP village after a senior minister virtually endorsed the kangaroo court’s order. On Friday, the villagers also thrashed two policemen who had gone to inquire into the matter, and set their motorcycle on fire.

Union home minister P Chidambaram has decried the diktat, while state women’s commission has asked the Baghpat SP to submit a report on the matter.

The panchayat held in Asara village of Baghpat had decreed that women below the age of 40 years should not be allowed to go to market. They should also cover their faces and heads whenever venturing out of their houses, and should not be allowed to use mobile phones. The panchayat even ruled that love marriages were not permissible and couples who tied the knot in love would not be allowed to live in the village.

On Friday, a sub-inspector and a policeman who went to the village to inquire into the matter, were beaten up after they took two of the accused into custody. A group of villagers surrounded the Ramala police station and forced the police to release the two.
What is even more shocking is the manner in which the state government has reacted to it. “People have the right to express their opinion freely,” said Azam Khan, one of the senior most ministers in the state government, when questioned about the diktat. “As long as their opinion is not in conflict with the law, they can decide on how to discipline their society. It’s not necessary that everyone would abide by their opinion,” he said.