Bhubaneswar: A tribal couple in Odisha’s Rayagada district was allegedly forced to plough a field with a yoke placed on their shoulders as a form of public punishment for marrying against community traditions, officials said on Friday.
The alleged incident took place at Kanjamajodi village within Kalyansinghpur police limits on Wednesday, they added.
A purported video of the incident, which went viral on social media on Friday, shows the young man and woman being paraded like oxen with a yoke strapped on their shoulders, made to plough a field in front of villagers and community elders.
PTI, however, could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.
According to villagers, the couple — who reportedly got married in defiance of customary tribal norms — were subjected to a public ‘purification’ ritual.
The young man is alleged to have married his paternal aunt (father’s sister), which is considered a taboo by the community due to their blood relation.
Once the relationship came to light, a kangaroo court of village elders reportedly convened and ordered the punishment, carried out in full public view.
After performing the ‘rituals’, the community leaders allegedly asked the couple to immediately leave the village. Their current whereabouts remain unknown.
Village head Biswanath Kurshika said, “We performed the ‘purification’ rituals and punished them so that they can get rid of the sin they have earned for marrying within the blood relation.”
If the rituals were not conducted, the villagers would have faced crop loss as there would be no rain in the area, he claimed.
Rajendra Kurshika, another villager, said, “The rituals were performed in accordance with our tradition and they (couple) were separated.”
Terming the act as ‘inhuman’, Rayagada sub-collector Ramesh Kumar Jena said he will visit the village on Saturday to inquire about the incident.
“Those found guilty during the inquiry will face legal action,” Jena said.
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