Gang-rape survivor fined Rs 5,000 by panchayat for 'bringing disrepute to village'

Raipur: A panchayat in Chattisgarh's Jashpur district fined a gang-rape survivor of Rs 5,000 for 'bringing disrepute to the village' by lodging a rape complaint with the local police. The panchayat claimed that the woman should have accepted their justice, who had proposed a fine of Rs 5,000 each on the two rape accused. 

The police officials told media outlets that they are yet to get a complaint from the 23-year-old survivor about the panchayat penalising her. But, the police have taken a note of it and investigation is underway. Also, the two suspects in the rape case have been arrested. 

According to a report, the incident happened on November 4 when the woman went out to spend a night at her relative's place. The two men named Sandeep and Kishore called the woman to a construction site on the pretext of providing her with a job, where they raped her and warned her of dire consequences if she mentioned about the incident about it to anyone. 

The cops claimed that as soon as the woman reached home she narrated the ordeal to her mother and they reached out to the local police. Reportedly when the officers asked them to file an official report, they seemed startled and left the place saying that they will come back and do so. 

Jashpur which is a tribal area, the word of panchayat and community elders is often hard to ignore. Meanwhile, 10 days later the entire village got to know about the incident and on November 14 the panchayat called for a meeting. After the woman narrated the incident to the village, the panchayat members stated that Sandeep and Kishore would be fined of Rs 5,000 each but they declared that the woman was equally culprit as she chose police officials over the panchayat. 

However, the police registered a complaint on November 16 and arrested both the suspects in the case. Complaint against the panchayat members is yet to be registered.