Married woman gangraped in Haryana; is Khap listening?

Chandigarh, Oct 17: When are

incidents going to end in

? The latest victim is a 30-year-old married

. This brings the figure of rape cases in Haryana to 18 in less than 40 days.

A 30-year-old married woman was allegedly gangraped in Lakhan Majra village in Rohtak. The incident occurred on Oct 13 when two suspects forcibly took the victim into a field on the outskirts of the village on a motor-bike and allegedly raped her, said a police official. The accused are said to be cousins of victim's husband.

The police has registered a case under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Both the accused have been arrested and will be produced in court tomorrow.

The rape of the married woman shows that no woman in Haryana, irrespective of their age or martial status, is safe. Although Khap members in Haryana believe that marrying off girls at a younger age (before 18 years) would help reduce rape incidents in the state. Thus, Khap's bizarre idea holds no point. Of late, the rising crime rate in Haryana is fuelling insecurity among women in the state.

Khap panchayats want marriageable age limit to be abolished and girls to be married off as early as possible to decrease incidents of rape.

"Boys and girls should be married by the time they turn 16-year-old, so that they do not stray... this will decrease the incidents of rape," Sube Singh, a Khap representative, said.

Another Khap member said, "As soon as the children attain puberty, it is natural for them to have sexual desires but when these are not fulfilled, they stray... so there should not be any minimum age limit for marriage."

The latest rape incident has come to light on a day when 30 MPs, who are part of a fact-finding committee, were heading to the state to meet the families of Dalit rape victims.

The spate of rape cases in the state has outraged women across the country. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's government has come under scanner as police has failed to provide safety and security measures to women.

OneIndia News