MP: Married woman forced to breastfeed lover

Indore, Jan 3: In a khap panchayat in Madhya Pradesh's Alirajpur district, a 25-year old married woman was forced to breastfeed her lover with whom she had eloped. The Bhil tribal panchayat, around 200 kilometers from Indore also cut the woman's and the man's hair who was in his early 20s.

The woman eloped with her lover, leaving her husband and three kids alone two months ago.

A complaint was lodged by the woman who claimed that the Panchayat ruling was carried out in front of other villagers. She named one Nakedia and 11 others in her complaint.

The woman and the man eloped to Gujarat, which borders Alirajpur, a few days ago. Following this, the villagers nabbed them and brought them to the Panchayat.

"The villagers came to know of the incident and brought the couple back. A panchayat was called and it allegedly ordered that hair of both be cut. Later, the woman was allegedly forced to breastfeed the man in the presence of villagers," said a villager. The panchayat then directed her to consider him her son henceforth.

While police have detained a few suspects, it is believed that the BHil community follow their own laws and adhere to them strictly. For instance, the penalty of rape ranges between Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.

OneIndia News