In Jhansi district’s Bacheda village, a Yadav family is facing a social boycott and a punitive fine of ₹20 lakh after their daughter, a lady constable posted in Lucknow, married her childhood friend, an inspector from the Patel community.
Although the April 30 wedding had the full support of both families, the inter-caste union angered villagers. A panchayat was held on May 13, where elders, including the village head, declared the marriage “unacceptable” and imposed the hefty fine, also warning that anyone speaking or transacting with the woman’s family would be fined ₹50,000.
“We were also warned about an interest of ₹3 per day. We are poor people. How can we pay ₹20 lakh? Our daughter is married and happy—what wrong have we done?” said the constable’s mother, who, along with her husband, runs a small dairy business. Since the boycott, their livelihood has collapsed as no one in the village buys their milk or interacts with them.
Despite approaching local police soon after the panchayat’s decision, the family was turned away and told to “settle” the matter. Their pleas went unheeded for weeks.
It was only after the woman’s father, Chiranjilal Yadav, approached the Jhansi police during a public grievance session on June 9 that action was taken. With folded hands, he narrated his ordeal to senior police officials. SSP BBGTS Murthy took cognizance of the matter, summoning the Todifatehpur station in-charge and ordering a full inquiry.
A case has now been registered against Santosh Yadav—the village head’s father—and others for enforcing a caste-based social boycott and issuing threats.
