Two sisters in India – one aged only 15-years – are to be raped as “punishment” for their brother running away with a married woman from a higher caste in the latest caste to shock the country. Meenakshi Kumari, who is 23, and her younger sister, will then be paraded naked with their faces blackened through the streets, according to a ruling from the all-male village council.
The sisters have petitioned the country’s Supreme Court to be protected from the so-called “eye-for-an-eye” ruling from the village council in Uttar Pradesh state, 30 miles from the capital Delhi. The family are from the Dalit caste, historically known as “untouchables”. However, the brother fell in love with a woman from the higher, Jat, caste.
The woman was forced into an arranged marriage in February with a man from her own caste despite her relationship, according to Zee news, citing the elder sister Meenakshi. The couple eloped in March, but returned to the village after the man’s family were allegedly tortured by police. The village council then made its ruling that the Dalit family should be dishonoured to “avenge” the brother’s supposed crime.
Meenakshi and her sister ran away to the capital after the ruling was handed out and were able to submit their petition for protection for their family at the Supreme Court. However, they are still facing the punishment when they return home.
