Sisters Sentenced To Rape For Brother’s Actions

An unofficial, and unelected, council of village elders in India is facing global wrath after sentencing two young girls to be raped after their brother eloped with a woman from a higher caste.

The older of the girls, 23-year-old Meenakshi Kumari, was forced to plead with the Indian Supreme Court for protection for herself and her younger sister, who is just 15.

Last month, a council of village men, many from the powerful Jat caste, decided that the girls, who come from the lowest Dalit, or untouchable, caste, would be gang raped and paraded naked through the village with blackened faces. The council claimed this was an appropriate response in their eyes for the ‘crimes’ of the girls’ brother Ravi who fell in love with a Jat woman and eloped with her. The reasoning behind this is that the councils operate on the belief that the sisters are property of their brother. Therefore, if the council orders them to be raped as punishment, their value is reduced, and their brother is summarily punished.

Fearing for their lives, and the lives of their family, the girls fled to Delhi.

Family members reported that their home was later looted and trashed by angry Jat members, with police unable or unwilling to stop them. There is also great fear held for the woman with whom Ravi eloped. According to statements from the family, the two are very much in love, and the woman willingly left with Ravi. She is now thought to be pregnant and in danger from both the council and her own family who disagree with her actions.

The family are standing up for their rights, and the rights of the women involved. In their village the Jat decision is final, but with a petition filed with India’s Supreme Court they hope to avoid the punishment and return home soon.

They are not alone. When Amnesty International learned of the story they were quick to condemn the actions of the council. In the UK they began a petition, which has now garnered more than 100,000 signatures. Amnesty is encouraging India’s law enforcement to seek out the men who handed down the disgusting ruling, who are a part of what is known as a Khap Court.

Rachel Alcock, Amnesty UK’s Urgent Action Coordinator said: “Khap courts routinely order vile sexually violent punishments against women. India’s Supreme Court has rightly declared such orders illegal. Rape is a revolting crime, not a punishment.”

India’s legal system is still working to catch up with the rapidly developing nation. As the old world and the new world collides, new rules need to be put in place and enforced to ensure that the lives of India’s citizens, especially women, aren’t in danger in the future.