Fatehabad panchayat ‘bans’ widow’s entry for 15 years

Deepender Deswal

Tribune News Service

Hisar, June 20

The elected panchayat of Dhani Bhojraj village in Fatehabad district has banned the entry of a widow in the village for 15 years.

The diktat was part of a written decision pronounced by the panchayat while settling a dispute over a share of land between the widow and her father-in-law.

The State Commission for Women (SCW) took note of the diktat and visited the village today. The SCW chairperson, Pratibha Suman, said she had recommended the suspension of the sarpanch and registration of a criminal case against the panchayat members who were present at the meeting which took the decision.

‘Panchayat not authorised to take such decisions’

A panchayat cannot issue such diktats and the appropriate authority along with the police can take action against the sarpanch. —Mahender Singh, BDPO

Shamsher, the husband of woman Rajbala Devi, had died under mysterious circumstances in September last year. A mother of two children, the widow got embroiled in a property dispute with her in-laws and demanded a share in the property. She along with her son went to her parental home in Chamar Khera village. Her daughter, aged 12, is still residingwith her grandfather.

Rajbala’s father-in-law Gopal owned 10 acres of agricultural land in the village. Gopal has three children — Shamsher (Rajbala Devi’s husband) and two daughters (both married).

Village sarpanch Sadhuram informed that at the behest of both parties, a panchayat was held at the village on May 25. The panchayat decided to divide 10 acres equally among seven members of the family, giving approximately 1.4 acres per person. The equal share of the land went to Gopal, his wife, Gopal’s daughter-in-law (Rajbala Devi), her son and her daughter besides two daughters of Gopal.

The panchayat decided that the rent of shares of Rajbala Devi and her son would be given to them annually as the land was leased out to another person for cultivation. The panchayat said a total of 4.5 acres (shares of Rajbala and her two children) would be mutated in the name of Rajbala’s son when he attains the legal age for landowning.

In this written decision, the panchayat stated that Rajbala Devi would stay with her parents for 15 years and not come to her in-laws’ house for this period.

Rajbala, however, stated that she had not accepted the decision of the panchayat about not visiting the village for 15 years. “How can they bar me from visiting the village? I refuse to accept the diktat of the panchayat,” she said.

Meanwhile, Block Development and Panchayat Officer (BDPO) Mahender Singh said a panchayat could not issue such diktats and the appropriate authority along with the police could take action against the sarpanch.

Diktat to settle dispute over 10-acre family land

The diktat was part of a written decision pronounced by Fatehabad’s Dhani Bhojraj village panchayat while settling a dispute over 10 acres of land between a widow, Rajbala Devi, and her father-in-law, Gopal. It said Rajbala would stay with her parents for 15 years and not come to her in-laws’ house for this period.