KOLKATA — Alarmed by the steep rise in suspected honour killings, the central government has decided to bring a new bill providing for the prosecution of the entire khap panchayat for ordering violent punishment for young couples marrying against their diktats, a senior minister said on Sunday.The central government will soon come out with a law against honour killings and a draft has already been prepared, Law and Justice Minister M. Veerappa Moily said on Sunday.
“Several incidents of honour killings have been reported recently, which stunned the people. And I am also concerned and worried about the rise of such incidents,' said Moily, after attending the regional meeting with chief justices of the Calcutta, Patna, Orissa and Jharkhand high courts and the law ministers of the four states.
According to Moily, under the new law, members of khap panchayat, who order the killing of the couples who dare to go against the dictates of these panchayats will be treated as accomplices in the crime. Such cases would be tried by fast track courts to provide speedy justice to the victims.
Even the Supreme Court has taken serious note of the so-called honour killings and has sought the response of the central government and eight states including Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. It has directed the authorities to explain the measures being taken to prevent such heinous crime.