The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) have directed the Malkangiri police to conduct an inquiry into the incident in which a young woman was forced to tonsure her head to get reentry into her caste fold and to submit a report on the same.
"The woman and her family have informed in writing that one, who desires to come back to his or her caste fold days after getting excommunicated, is required to obey the community elders' decision. This is an age-old tradition of the adivasi community" Malkangiri IIC Raj Kishore Das told mediapersons here.
However, the woman's family said that they were not interested in filing any complaint against anyone in the matter.
Notably, an 18-year-old lachma Ambagachia, daughter of Raghunath Ambagachia of Nilimari village in Goudaguda gram panchayat under Malkangiri sadar block had married Pitamber Bhumia of Munusha village in Sindhimal gram panchayat two years back.
While Pitamber belonged to the Bhumia caste, lachma was from the Gouda caste. lachma's family was excommunicated by the villagers after her marriage to Pitamber.
Two years after their marriage, Pitamber parted ways with lachma, forcing her to go back to her parents. Her father Raghunath requested community leaders to accommodate his daughter into their caste-fold.
Community elders from Nilimari and adjoining villages held a meeting in the village on Friday and asked lachma to tonsure her head. After her father Raghunath gave a feast to villagers and paid some money as penalty, lachma re-entered her caste-fold.