Boycott rapist's family, Agra panchayat rules

A maha panchayat in Agra district has called for the boycott of a family of a man who allegedly raped and murdered an eight-year-old girl.

The panchayat ordered that the rapist's family should not be given irrigation water or provided tractors. Violators would be fined Rs.21,000.

The decision may not have legal sanction, but the panchayat in Kachaura has also enforced a ban on singing and dancing in the village.

On April 25, the girl was raped and murdered allegedly by Shailendra alias Chintoo.

On Thursday, residents of several villages met and after several hours of heated deliberations announced the drastic steps.

A 33-member monitoring committee has been set up to punish anyone who violates the diktat.

A former pradhan of the village, Uttam Singh, told IANS: "Such crimes have never happened in this area. We want to set a precedent by punishing the guilty."

The ban on music, nautanki and other entertainment that trigger loud music was enforced because it was during such a musical performance that the eight-year-old girl was picked up, raped and murdered.

Her body was found the next morning in a field. The panchayat said that if there had been no noisy music, her cries would have been heard and people would have rushed to help her.