Info's of

New Delhi:  Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, has said he
does not see the need for  banning khap panchayats or unelected
all-male village councils that often endorse harsh treatment of
women because they serve a "cultural purpose."
Mr Kejriwal and his  Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have declared that
their mission is to cleanse India's polity of corruption, a promise
that has considerable appeal among urban voters.
But the 45-year-old former tax inspector's soft stand on khap
panchayats is likely to disappoint many supporters who hoped his
progressive social politics would include a strong agenda for
women's empowerment. (AAP eyes Haryana, open to dialogue with
'khap panchayats')
"No, it is not a question of banning these panchayats," Kejriwal
told Thomson Reuters Foundation late on Monday.  "Khap
Panchayats are a group of people who come together. There is no
bar on people to assemble in this country ... (But) whenever they
take a wrong decision, whenever they take an illegal decision, they
ought to be punished."
Khap panchayats in states like Haryana frequently issue
misogynistic diktats that ban women from using cellphones or
visiting markets without a male relative. Their most extreme
punishment is ordering 'honour killings' or the deaths of young
couples who marry  against the khap's guidelines for inter and
intra caste relationships.
While the punitive edicts issued by these de-facto courts have been
condemned by the Supreme Court, criticised by the media, and
slammed by feminists, the councils continue to act with impunity,
unchallenged by police and government.
Last week, 13 men were arrested after they were alleged to have
gang-raped a 20-year-old tribal women on the orders of a village
court in West Bengal as punishment for having a relationship with
a man from another community. (West Bengal gang-rape, allegedly
ordered by village council, stuns Supreme Court)