Recently, people of Haryana, UP, Rajasthan and Delhi, mostly hail from villages organized a general meeting that is called ‘Sarvakhap Panchayat’. I don’t understand the meaning of ‘Sarvakhap’ but it seems either they belong to one particular community or people having ruler back ground are called ‘Sarvakhap’. They organized the meeting to protest the court decision in Manoj and Babli case. In this case, the two belong to the same ‘Gotra’. In their community, if a bride and bridegroom belong to same cast or same village, they would not get married. If it happens, their society will not recognize such marriage rather they will be punished. In the above case, the ‘panchayat’ ordered to kill both, the bride and the bridegroom; the order was implemented, and both were killed. The case was tried in the Karnal court. The court found five persons guilty in this case, and it sentenced these five accused to death on 30thMarch.
The prominent leaders who led this meeting seem to belong to one particular community. There were about a hundred speakers who had delivered their lectures. Mahender Singh Tikket, president of All India Kisan Union said that it is wrong to label the decision of ‘Panchayat’as a ‘Tuglaki Farman’. Jagdish Singh, president of Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, said, ‘Laws are made for society, society is not made for laws.’ Most of the speakers said more or less the same thing. They said, ‘We have our own culture and rituals, and the Govt. has no right to interfere in it. The Western culture is being imposed on us. We will not tolerate it, if it happens so.’ They even condemned the court decision, but refused the allegation that they had ordered to kill Manoj and Babli. They demanded the Indian Govt. to make necessary changes in the Hindu marriage act. So that marriage in the same ‘Gotra’ and in the same village will be considered illegal. They will write the letter to the Central Govt. in this regard.
If any society tries to follow its old culture and rituals, it should be appreciated, but this thought may be incorrect in the present time. If any old ritual is not compatible with the new law, we should not stick to it. We should think over it repeatedly with open mind, although it is very difficult to accept the change. Human nature is such that it doesn’t easily digest the change. There is no other method to get correct answer for any problem except regular discussions with open heart and mind.