In western Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly, all it took were a few rounds of shoe-beatings for a local panchayat to absolve a man accused of sharing obscene pictures of a young woman with her suitors, impacting her chances of marriage.
The incident involved the 22-year-old man and the 18-year-old woman, who were both related to each other. Upon knowing the man's acts, the woman's family called for a panchayat to resolve the matter in Hardua Kifayat Ullah village of the Nawabganj block, locals said.
Sharing details about the incident, Pragya Gangwar, the block chief of Nawabganj, on Tuesday said the accused edited a local woman's photos into obscene images and shared them with her prospective grooms.
The panchayat decided to resolve the matter considering the young man's future, but the woman's mother insisted on punishing him first, Gangwar said.
"The panchayat concluded that after the mother beat the accused with shoes, he would be forgiven, and it was agreed that no police action would be taken," she added.
The panchayat believed that if the matter went to the police, the young man's future would be ruined, so it was best to resolve it within the village, an elderly local said.
Hardua village head Afsana said, "In the panchayat itself, the victim had put a condition that she will not forgive the man until she hits him with her slippers. Her mother hit him with her slippers after the panchayat and the man agreed." "The man has been forgiven by his relatives and it was decided that no action will be taken by the police," Afsana said.
"It was a matter between the two families and it has been settled," Afsana added.
The obscene pictures of the woman had gone viral on social media and the victim's family confronted the accused.
The woman's father said, "Whenever I talk about my daughter's marriage, this man sends obscene photos to prospective grooms, ruining her chances (of marriage)." Meanwhile, Bareilly's Superintendent of Police (North) Mukesh Chandra Mishra said, "Currently, we have no information about such an incident, but we will investigate the matter and take necessary action."
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