Khaps’ attacks on inter-caste marriages illegal: Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday made it clear that if an adult man and woman marry, no Khap Panchayat, individual or society can question them and slammed the Centre for not enacting a law to prevent Khap Panchayats from taking law into their hands.

A three-judge bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Kanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud orally observed that the attacks by Khap Panchayats on inter-caste marriages and “honour killings” are “absolutely illegal”.  The bench made it clear that if the Centre failed to stop the Khap Panchayats through legislation, then the court would intervene to put an end to this practice.

The court asked the Centre to give its response on suggestions earlier given by amicus curiae Raju Ramachandran on ways to prevent harassment and killing of young couples in the name of family honour for marrying inter-caste or intra-clan (gotra).

The CJI observed, “What we are concerned is that if an adult girl or boy gets into marriage, no khap, no individual or no society can question them. Whenever there is any kind of collective attack on a boy or girl who are adult, it is absolutely illegal.”

The bench was hearing a PIL filed by NGO Shakti Vahini in 2010 seeking directions to the Central and state governments to prevent and control crimes committed in the name of honour. Senior advocate Mr Ramachandran said the families of couples going against the wishes of the Khaps were left with no option but to kill them. “This is the atmosphere.”  

He also said that tha Law Commission had recommended enacting a law to protect couples opting for inter-caste marriages, but the government is “lethargically” taking views of the state governments. In an affidavit, the Sarv Khap Panchayats of Rohtak submitted that the “main culprits for honour killings are not the representatives of Khaps but the near and dear ones of the affected couples and more so the relatives of the girls when they cannot resist the social pressure of the locality and the taunts of the relatives. Any effort to regulate the Khaps’ conduct and role would not have any impact on the incidents of honour killings.” They said the Khaps were not against marriages involving couples from different castes, religions, creed or regions. The Khaps were only against same gotra marriages for which they had made a representation to the Central government seeking an amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act, they contended.