No live-in: All-caste khap makes parental consent must for love marriages

LUCKNOW: An all-caste Sarv Khap Panchayat in Muzaffarnagar in western Uttar Pradesh, unanimously passed 11 resolutions against what it called the prevalent social evils, including opposition to live-in relationships and homosexuality and making parental consent for love marriage mandatory. The panchayat also recommended ending traditional 13-day death feast. Notably, it set up a committee to enforce the decisions, with the next meeting scheduled for 2035. Organised in Sorum village of Shahpur Nagar panchayat area on Tuesday, it saw former Union minister Sanjeev Balyan and present Uttar Pradesh minister Kapil Dev Agarwal among the prominent attendees that attracted around 15,000 people. The khap, which witnessed the participation of khap chaudharis and thumbedars of around 36 communities, along with farmers and common people, held three-day deliberations on what the organisers called social evils, traditions, and vices spreading in the society. Participants came from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Jammu and Kashmir. The chaudhary of the Balyan Khap and Bharatiya Kisan Union national president Naresh Tikait and national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait also attended the event. Budhana MLA Rajpal Balyan and Muzaffarnagar MP Harendra Malik also participated in it. Its leaders decided that an all-caste panchayat should be held once in a decade to address social evils. What the Sarv Khap Panchayat resolved Ban on death feasts, female feticide, and dowry system Initiative for de-addiction Opposition to live-in relationships, homosexuality Parental consent for love marriage Girl child education Environmental, cow protection