In Charkhi Dadri, panchayat boycotts Muslim family over inter-faith marriage

Amid the rising tension over the ‘nikah’ between a Muslim youth and a Hindu girl at Mahrana village in Charkhi Dadri district, a joint panchayat of three villages on Sunday ordered the social boycott of the youth’s family.

The panchayat, which was held at Patuwas village in the district, claimed that since the couple had submitted affidavits for separation, they would no longer stay together and their marriage would be dissolved.

Residents from three villages — Kheri Sanwal, Mahrana and Patuwas — attended the panchayat that was presided over by village elders and lasted for about three hours. The dispute arose when Shahid, 25, a Muslim youth from Mahrana village, tied the knot in court with a Hindu girl from the same village on July 3.

“The marriage was later called off through an affidavit by the couple to declare their marriage null and void,” said Dharampal who presided over the panchayat. He added that the girl was converted to Islam and she had now given an affidavit to return to Hinduism.

Notably, the prevailing social customs restrict marriages in the same gotra (clan) and in the same village. When Shahid married a Hindu girl from the same village, it was met with resistance and protest.

Addressing mediapersons, Dharampal said after the meeting, the grandfather of Shahid had agreed that he would not come back to the village. The panchayat further decided that no social relations would be maintained with Shahid’s family across all three villages. It also announced that the couple would live separately. “The separation process is already underway,” he added.

Keeping in view the tense situation, the police were also deployed in the village. The villagers however called a panchayat to announce their decision regarding the snapping of ties, ban on the entry of youth in the village and the social boycott of his family.

Charkhi Dadri DSP Deeraj Kumar said though the police were deployed at the venue of the panchayat, they were not aware of any diktats issued at event. “The police have not got any complaint from any side regarding any kind of restrictions, etc,” he said, adding that the situation was peaceful in the village now.

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