New Delhi, May 13
The National Human Rights Commission today slammed khap panchayats, saying honour killings violated an individual’s right to life and were not an excuse to uphold tradition.

In a statement, the commission said that no individual had the right to take the law in his hands. The human rights body has issued notices to public authorities on complaints and media reports that have alleged violence against Hindu couples who marry or want to marry either in the same gotra or outside their castes in Haryana and western UP. It has asked them to take action against those responsible for “acts violating human rights of the people”.

NHRC said that it had also taken note of the khap panchayats’ demand to amend the Hindu Marriage Act to ban same gotra marriages. “Amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act is a matter of wider debate, keeping in view the national perspective on the social, cultural and traditional aspects, as well as an individual’s Right to Liberty as enshrined in the Constitution,” it said.

The human rights body also asked Uttar Pradesh officials to inform it about action against the khap panchayat for preventing it from interfering in the criminal justice system. The statement comes after a slew of media reports highlighted how couples in parts of Haryana and western UP were being hounded by the draconian khap panchayats, often resulting in their killings or fleeing from home to save their lives.