Khap is a group of villages cohesive by caste and geography. It was started by upper caste jats to merge their supremacy and position in the 14th century. The core canon is that all boys and girls within a khap are deemed as siblings. Khap panchayat administers the khap created by same clan families from a number of bordering villages. Khap panchayats are rampant in Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh and parts of Rajasthan. Love marriages are banned in vicinities administered by Khap panchayats. Those living in a Khap are not permitted to tie the knot in the same clan or even in any other clan from the same village. Scores of young couples have been put to death in the past flouting khap system. Khap panchyat inflicts its injunctions through social boycotts and fines and majority of the cases wind up either homicide or compelling the victims to commit suicide. All this is done in the name of brotherhood and its honor. It is due to the intrinsic fault of democratically chosen Panchayati Raj institutions, Khap panchayats have been influential. Even the government has not done a lot to manage their clout.
These institutions should be discarded by the society and should lend a hand in abolishing such old customs and traditions. Moreover, honor and respect does not give anyone the license to take away someones life. These customs should be uprooted from the society making it a better one to live.
These institutions should be discarded by the society and should lend a hand in abolishing such old customs and traditions. Moreover, honor and respect does not give anyone the license to take away someones life. These customs should be uprooted from the society making it a better one to live.