The media has rightly exposed the heinous crime of killing people under the guise of protecting the ‘honour’ of the caste or community. This monstrous practice reported from some states of India goes to show that there is something seriously amiss in our socio-cultural ethos.
It is quite strange to learn that even after 60 years of independence and with all the progress we have made, there still exist some obnoxious practices in our society that make the life of people most difficult. Social and familial traditions continue to exert strong influence on individual choices, especially when it comes to marriage. More often than not, in most cases young men and women do not make their choice of life partners; their parents do it for them.
And in exercising their prerogative, the parents often give undue importance to social status, caste and religious affiliation and economic soundness rather than the personal preferences of their sons or daughters. A marriage in India is, therefore, treated as not merely a conjugal union between two individuals but an amalgamation of two families.
While there is some value in the Indian approach to family bonds, one cannot but at the same time admit the prevalence of the overbearing influence of the family on an individual’s life. It can at times be so stifling that the individual is left with little room for exercising his/her personal freedom of choice. And most people fall in line with the dictates of the customs and traditions, which in turn provide them with a sense of security. Those who opt to move beyond the line of control often have to meet stiff resistance from conservatives who would do everything possible to preserve the hallowed traditions. Honour killing is one such instance where people who opted to exercise their freedom of choice were made to pay with their precious lives.
Khap Panchayats have been flaunting their clout in enforcing the gotra (sub-caste) rule when it comes to marriage, and even some politicians have been aligning with such obscurantist practices. Mercifully, the judiciary has come forward to halt the march of traditionalism that stifles individual freedom ensured in the constitution of India.
It is to be noted that India is no stranger to bizarre social practices. We have reports about the evil practice of Sati in our own times in spite of its ban by the government decades ago. Despite the best efforts of law-enforcing agencies in India to put an end to such a weird social custom, it is most unfortunate that some sections of society continue to justify it by erecting monuments in honour of the ones who committed Sati. There is definitely a strong case for social reformation in line with the modern times.
Has India moved forward in its socio-cultural aspects? It would be incorrect to say a firm ‘No’ in answer to this question, but in the same breath it should also be accepted that we have a long way to go when it comes to breaking the boundaries of caste and religious identities. For most people, caste and religion have served as fundamental sources of their identity and it takes a lot of courage to transcend it. This is partly because of the social hierarchy perpetrated by caste identity and the polarization it generates. And, therefore, any marriage that defies this social hierarchy will naturally invite the wrath of those who are determined to preserve their privileged social domain.
This social divide is much more pronounced when it comes to religious affiliation. There seems so much of paranoia created by certain socio-political organisations in India about people wanting to move beyond their given religious affiliation and identity. There is no dearth of incidents in the recent past (thanks to the cash-for-riot nationalists like Pramod Muthalik and his infamous Sri Ram Sene) where couples from different religious affiliations were subjected to social boycott and even physical intimidation by vigilantes. That such things continue to take place in a country that has accepted individual freedom as the foundational principle of democracy is a matter of serious concern for all right-thinking people.
All said and done, we must do all that we can to put an end to the barbaric practice of ‘honour’ killing of people. People have their fundamental human rights to live their lives in a dignified manner, and society should facilitate that instead of creating hurdles on their way in the name of redundant traditions. Civil society groups and religious leaders need to join hands in order to rid society of several outlandish practices that have lost their relevance. Let the deadening traditions be given a go by for a better tomorrow.
(Rev. Dr. Babu Joseph is the spokesperson of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India. The views expressed are personal. He can be contacted at cbcipro@gmail.com)
