This story is from May 29, 2016

Marriage within clan: Dalit family forced out of village

A panchayat of dalits at a village in Haryana's Karnal district has forced a family from the community to leave home after its son married a girl from the same gotra (caste clan).
Marriage within clan: Dalit family forced out of village
Bunty Kumar and Komal tied the knot at a temple in Panchkula on May 12.
CHANDIGARH: A panchayat of dalits at a village in Haryana's Karnal district has forced a family from the community to leave home after its son married a girl from the same gotra (caste clan).
The panchyat was called at Pyont village on May 19, and it asked the family to leave on the same day. The boy, Bunty Kumar alias Vikas (22), and the girl, Komal (18), tied the knot at a temple in Panchkula on May 12 and belong to the Dulgach gotra of Valmiki community.

On Saturday, Vikas's father, Karam Singh, wrote to Haryana State Human Rights Commission and sought hep in the matter.
The villagers have accused the couple of violating social norms. At present, the couple is living in a protection home of the police.
Vikas recently passed Class X, while Komal has studied up to Class XII. They had been in a relationship for the past couple of months. Karam Singh told TOI that they had no objection to the marriage, but the girl's family was opposing the couple's plan from the start.
After Komal approached the Punjab and Haryana high court, it asked the police on May 18 to take suitable action in case of any threat to the two.
Of the 4,000 families in the village, 100 are from the Valmiki community. According to the complaint to the commission, the panchayat on the same day reached Karam's house and asked him to leave the village along with his three minor daughters. "They did not even allow me to take along articles from the home," said Singh, a junior employee of the state public health department. "These days, I am hiding at one place or another along with my wife and daughters," Karam added.

According to the panchayat's resolution, which has been accessed by TOI, the family has been punished for the "anti-social act" of Vikas.
"By doing this marriage against social norms, Vikas has let the entire community down. Anyone who invites Karam Singh to his home will meet the same fate - expulsion from the village," warned the panchayat. Karam alleged that the panchayat members also forced him to sign the resolution.
Karnal superintendent of police (SP) Pankaj Nain said the matter was not in their knowledge. "We will check the matter and will take action as per law," Nain added.
author
About the Author
Sukhbir Siwach

Sukhbir Siwach is Special Correspondent at The Times of India, Chandigarh, and covers news on Haryana. Sukhbir prefers to focus on investigative stories, and has recently won the Laadli award given by United Nations Population Fund. Sukhbir has a diverse portfolio but especially likes writing on sensitive social issues including controversial decisions by the khaps and the problem of skewed sex ratios in Haryana. His hobbies include reading, writing, sports and meeting people.

End of Article
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA