Pregnant rape survivor’s family ‘ostracised for 12 years’ by village panchayat in Chhattisgarh

RAIPUR: A case of alleged social punishment has come to the fore when a rape complaint led a village panchayat in Chhattisgarh’s Balrampur district to ostracise a seven-month pregnant tribal survivor and her family from the community for 12 years.

The survivor had lodged an FIR against her male friend accusing him of rape on the promise of marriage. Though the accused was arrested, the village convened a meeting and declared a social boycott. The young woman in her twenties from a village in Balrampur, alleged that she had been in a relationship with a local youth for about a year. According to the complaint, when the woman conceived and she pressed him to fulfil that promise, he allegedly refused.

After informing her family, the woman approached police and lodged a complaint. Police registered a case, arrested the accused and sent him to jail last week.But instead of support after the police action, the woman’s family says they faced punishment from their own village.The panchayat called a meeting after the arrest and declared a 12-year social boycott of not only the survivor’s family but also the family of her maternal cousin, who had supported them through the case.

The alleged order effectively pushed both families out of the village’s social life. They were told to stay away from community functions, religious events and other collective activities, while villagers were allegedly instructed not to attend any programme organised by the two families.What has made the episode even more disturbing are the humiliating conditions imposed for the family’s return to the community.The survivor’s family alleged that the panchayat said if they wanted to be taken back into the social fold, they would first have to admit their “mistake,” wash the feet of the entire village, and bathe with that water. They were also allegedly told to serve goat meat, rice and liquor to the community as a penalty before being accepted back.Village sarpanch was quoted as alleging that the accused had been falsely implicated.

He said this was why the family had been socially boycotted.The survivor’s family has now complained to senior officials, seeking protection and action. Officials said the complaint regarding social ostracism had come to the administration’s notice and that all parties would be called for a hearing. An officer said the matter would be examined in detail and appropriate action taken in accordance with law.The survivor said that even though the accused is behind bars, she is now fighting a second battle — not in court, but in her own village.