INDIAN ROMANCE VII

Panchayat murders couple over caste
CNN-IBN
Published on Monday , July 02, 2007 at 23:04

Karnal (Haryana): Less than 200 kilometers from the Capital of India, a scene of barbaric brutality, a mindless medieval mandate that has cost the lives of a young newly-wed couple.
Manoj and Babli got married on the May 18, not realising that their village panchayat would take strong objection to this.The panchayat's logic was that both Manoj and Babli were of the same gotra and that, in the eyes of the panchayat, makes them brother and sister.The entire village turned against them and the panchayat ostracised Manoj's family, decreeing that anyone violating the order will be fined Rs 25,000.
But it didn't stop there. On June 15, Manoj and Babli were allegedly kidnapped. A desperate search by their families resulted in nothing, not even the police was willing to give them much help and then they were found dead on June 24.Their bodies thrown into a canal, hands and legs tied up and were cremated by the police who declared them destitutes.
Finally, under pressure, they acted, arresting three people on charges of killing the couple but even then, the alleged killers show no remorse.“Those who do wrong have to die. Law does not recognize this but society punishes
such people,” said one of the accused. The families now want the panchayat members also arrested and investigated. “On June 20 we lodged an FIR but nothing happened,” said Manoj's cousin Narendra. Manoj's mother is still trying to deal with this senseless murder that claimed her only son and her daughter-in-law.“At least they should have given their bodies,” said Manoj’s mother Chandrapati.

And even as the investigation stutters to a start, Manoj's family knows that no punishment can ever compensate for their loss.

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