Haryana’s powerful khap panchayats have served an ultimatum on all MPs and MLAs from the state to extend their support to amending the Hindu Marriage Act to ban same gotra marriages.
The panchayats are up in arms against the judiciary and police after a Karnal court recently sentenced five people to death and one to life imprisonment for killing a young couple, Manoj and Babli, who had married going against the Khap diktat that bans same gotra marriage.
Representatives of 30 khaps met at Danoda Kalan village in Jind district of Haryana on Sunday to discuss ‘‘emerging scenario following severe criticism of khap diktats in controversial marriages and honour killings.’’
The Jind meeting presided over by Nail khap chief Nafe Singh Nail adopted two resolutions: one, amendment in the Hindu Marriage Act to accommodate the ‘‘social norms’’ of Haryana; and, two, calling on all the 10 MPs from the state to bring in a proposal for amending the Act in the Lok Sabha. The panchayat representatives said the MPs could face protests if they did not support the cause of khaps.