Bloody altar of ‘honour’

Yet another newly married Haryanvi couple has been sacrificed at the altar of ‘honour’. While the man has succumbed to the bullet wounds allegedly inflicted by family members who traced the couple to their house in Delhi, the woman is battling for survival. The attack underscores the lack of adequate and exemplary efforts to provide an atmosphere of safety or instill fear of the law among the perpetrators of the crime. It is a pity that the social fabric of Haryana continues to be tightly woven by outdated and archaic rules of marriage defined by gotra, caste and creed. Any transgression is still seen as an unpardonable affront to the ‘family honour’; horrible reports of the young lovers’ near and dear ones hounding them and baying for their blood are common.

The regular flow of petitions in the courts by young couples fearing for their lives and requesting state protection shows that the khap panchayat-led narrow mores continue to have a vice-like grip on the society’s mindset. Recognising the right to life and liberty, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has been, irrespective of the legality or morality of the couple’s relationship, mostly directing that security be provided to them. Incidentally, the Dwarka duo too had moved court soon after their marriage last August and the Sonepat police had been ordered to ensure their safety. Last week, though a Muslim couple was denied security when the man’s first wife intervened, claiming she had not been divorced, the HC singled out the second wife’s life as being in danger and ordered protection to her.

Along with judicial activism, societal change is the key to mitigating this social evil. While education and awareness of the right to life and liberty are necessary, prompt punishment to the criminals is also vital. But little advancement has been made on these scores and the menace prevails with impunity. The regularity of the brazen murders is a pointer to glaring gaps in the execution of state policies.