Taking an initiative to root out social evil female foeticide from the society, Haryana Khaps have decided to punish those people at its own level, who are found indulged in female foeticide.
The khap will not only impose a financial penalty on these people but also boycott them socially so that no one could dare to commit this crime.
Decision to this effect was taken by Khatri Khap at a meeting held at Gijjhi village under sampla sub-division here on Friday on the auspicious occasion of Ramnavmi.
The Khap also slapped a ban on dowry system stating that no one belonging to Khatri gotra would neither accept nor give dowry in weddings of their sons and daughters as the dowry system is boosting the social evils.
The Khap panchayat also constituted a Committee which would keep a tab on people of Khatri gotras and would inform the panchayat if any one is found indulged in violating the decisions of the Khap.
The Committee would also work in the direction of motivating the people to eradicate the female foeticide and dowry system from the society.
Earlier, the Khap representatives said orthodox mentality of the people towards girls was required to be changed to check the menace of female foeticide. Hence, sincere efforts should be made to bring a change in state of mind of the people.
“Poor thinking and mental backwardness are the main causes responsible for female foeticide in the society. What is required is to educate the people about female foeticide at grass-root level so as to alter their traditional mentality which prefers son instead of girl,” said a Khap representative at the meeting.
Another Khap leader said notwithstanding all-out efforts being made by the government and NGOs to curb the female foeticide in the state, daughters are still being killed in womb.
This is nothing except the orthodox frame of mind of Haryana people who do not wish daughter and terms the daughters as ‘burden’. Need of the hour is to change the mindset of the people, which can be done by educating them in depth in this regard.
In this situation, the Khaps which can play a vital role in stamping out this social evil should take some stern steps at its own level against those found to be indulged in female foeticide, the meeting resolved.
"The Khap panchayat's decision will turn out to be instrumental in checking the menace of female foeticide especially in villages as villagers take the panchayat's decision seriously by giving them respect," claimed a khap leader.