A tribal girl was allegedly beaten and then paraded with her head shaved after she refused to follow a panchayat order to get married to a person arranged by her family without her consent, in Jharkhand's Palamu district.
The girl was also garlanded with shoes, and finally left in the forest in the night.
After receiving the information, the police recovered the girl from the forest and admitted her to Raja Medini Rai Medical College and Hospital in Palamu for treatment. There were injury marks on several parts of her body. She has been
The police have registered an FIR in this matter and are conducting raids to arrest the accused.
The incident took place in Jogidih village under Patan police station.
It is said that the girl has no parents. She has three sisters who are married, and a brother who has become disabled due to illness. One of her sisters had arranged her marriage with a man from Manika of Latehar district without her consent. The girl was refusing to marry him.
Despite her refusal, the marriage procession reached her house on April 19, but just before the wedding, the girl eloped on April 20. She had taken a shelter in a temple in Chhatarpur block.
Her cousin brothers somehow called her on May 10. She was forced to marry again. When the girl refused, the cousins called a panchayat in the village on Sunday. She was questioned about a 'love affair' with someone.
When the girl remained silent, she was was beaten with sticks. Many people of the village, including her cousin brothers and sisters-in-law, were involved in the act. Her cousin sister-in-law herself shaved her hair with scissors. She was garlanded with shoes after applying 'Tika' on her forehead.
After parading her in the village, she was left in a forest in Tarhasi police station area. On Monday, when some people of another village went to the forest to graze the cattle, the incident came to light.
Police claim that the accused will be arrested soon.