SA Time: Friday, November 18, 2011 10:54:09 AM
'Honour killers' sentenced to death
November 17 2011 at 01:35pm
By Sunrita Sen.
New Delhi - Eight men have been sentenced to death and 27 others to
life in prison for a so-called honour killing in northern India 20
years ago, news reports said on Thursday.
The defendants sentenced on Wednesday were mostly members of a village
council in Uttar Pradesh that ordered the hanging of a young man from
the Dalit caste and a woman from the higher Jat caste who had eloped,
the Times of India newspaper reported.
They also murdered the man's cousin for helping the couple.
Marriages between people of different castes, religions or within
certain kinship groups are still frowned upon in large parts of rural
India. Activists say scores of men and women are ostracised or killed
every year for defying the segregation traditions.
On March 21, 1991, Vijendra Jatav, 22, eloped with Roshni, 19, from
Mehrana village. Three days later, they returned, hoping the outrage
would have died down.
But the next day, a village council ordered them to be publicly
hanged, together with Jatav's cousin Ram Kishan.
In a complaint filed with the local police, Ram Kishan's uncle Amir
Chand alleged the couple were brutally assaulted during the hearing
and their private parts set on fire.
Jatav reportedly said he would accept exile from the village, but the
elders refused to relent.
Most of the men who were convicted were over 60 years old, and one was
95. Fifteen of the 54 accused in the case died during the trial, one
was acquitted while three who were minors at the time, including the
girl's brother, were being tried by a separate juvenile court.
There is no composite data on such killings in India as records do not
distinguish them from other forms of murder, but such incidents are
frequently reported.
In May 2011, India's Supreme Court recommended the death penalty for
those convicted of committing "honour killings." Capital punishment is
handed down only in very rare cases in India. - Sapa-dpa
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