For the sake of honor

For The Sake of Honor

This fictional story is set in a village in Northern Part of India


There was a sense of gloom around the house in Kaithal district where Sulochana, mother of 21 yr old Apoorva was forced to leave her house near the Jai Baba Ramnath temple in Karora, a village in the interior of Kaithal district.

Her daughter Apoorva was in love with Manoj, who belonged to the same caste. Manoj was well-educated and had his own cloth business. He hailed from Kaithal district and met Apoorva in Karora village once when he was out to meet his family friend. They began to show interest in each other. Sulochana often spotted Apoorva sitting alongside Manoj on the outskirts of the village and chatting with him. She tried sermonizing Apoorva about staying away from Manoj, fearing the fallout of such an alliance. Marrying within the caste was considered sacrilege in Karora village. Sulochana felt happy for Apoorva as she found her companion in a good boy like Manoj but she feared the local khap panchayat. Her husband Shiv was himself a member of the khap panchayat.

Apoorva was adamant and never listened to her mother. Things took an ugly turn when Shiv came to know of Apoorva’s love affair with Manoj and he threatened Manoj’s family with dire consequences. He soon arranged for the marriage of his daughter with the son of a Sarpanch from the neighboring village. He admonished Sulochana for her support for Apoorva’s love affair and ordered her to leave the house at once and packed her off to her mother’s house at Kaithal district.


“Why should this happen to Apoorva, Ma” Sulochana cried


Her mother Parvati tried to comfort her standing nearby as she kneaded the chapatti dough.


Sulochana was looking at the colorful bangles, jewellery and colorful saris scattered in the bed nearby with disdain. The bridegroom selected by her family for her beautiful daughter Apoorva was a well-built young man from the neighboring village and was the nephew of the Sarpanch (village head). He ran an Akhara (wrestling club) and was an influential politician who raised money from the neighboring sawmills, factories and khatals (dairy sheds).


Sulochana did not like this hurriedly arranged proposal but no one listened to her.


“Is there no voice for us?” Apoorva’s mother Sulochana cried.


“Be calm, your husband’s family will try and convince your daughter. Apoorva is a young child and does not know the rules of our family and the village panchayat.” said Apoorva’s grandmother Parvati.


“My daughter is educated. I will not allow her fate to be like mine.” Sulochana said.


“Why don’t you understand, my dear? Don’t you remember your wedding? You looked very beautiful and always respected your elders.”


“Those days are gone, Ma” Sulochana said.


“You cried like a baby at the thought of getting separated from me. Look where you are now. You are a proud mother of three daughters. Your husband took lot of care for you and we are all happy together even if you do not belong to my house.”


“Ma, but I did not know anything. I suffered the insults and abuses silently as I was dependent on others. My daughters are not like me. They are educated and can look after themselves. I do not want them to languish in these villages.”


“Beti, you are talking too much. Your daughter is trying to run away with that guy who is of the same caste. Does she not know that it is against our family honor?”


“He may be, but he loves her. He earns well and will look after her very well. Why can’t you all understand this?” Sulochana cried.


“You are crossing your limits, beti (daughter). Your husband was kind enough to send you here. His family could have killed you for supporting your daughter’s love affair. Don’t you understand that you have other two daughters at marriageable age? It seems that the ghost of your daughters’ education has got to you. That is why; I always oppose women going to school and getting employed. Your husband was kind enough to allow your daughters total freedom, but they are exceeding their limits. Education has corrupted them.”


“What are you telling Ma, Apoorva is my daughter and not any roadside thing? It is unfair on the part of my husband and his brothers to kidnap her and forcibly marrying her off to some goon.”


“Look, your husband has to adhere to the tradition of his family and the village Panchayat. You should have convinced your daughter and made her understand out community rules. Despite all this that fool Manoj is trying to elope with Apoorva”


“What are you talking, Ma?”


“Manoj has arranged to elope with Apoorva. He is also reported to have booked tickets for escaping to New Delhi. Your family has got wind of their plans and is out to prevent them.”


“They can’t do this, Ma. My daughter Apoorva is 21 yrs old and is capable of taking her decisions. Please allow me to go. I will convince my husband.” Sulochana said.


“You please try to understand. You will not do anything that is against our family honor.” her mother Parvati warned her.


Sulochana pushed her mother, Apoorva’s grandmother and rushed towards the door. Her brother tried to prevent her, but she was not willing to listen.


Sulochana took the town bus and returned back to her home. Her other two daughters were crying in the house. Her mother-in-law came alongwith her brother-in-law and questioned her “How dare you enter this house on your own without your husband’s permission. Go back to your mother’s house.”



Sulochana’s other two daughters shielded her.


She wiped their tears and said, “Come with me.”


“You can’t take them away from here” thundered her brother-in-law.


Her second daughter slapped him.


Her brother-in-law slapped both of her daughters in return. Sulochana was pushed to her bedroom and was locked from outside.


Unaware of all this, Sulochana’s daughter Apoorva was decked in the attire of a perfect bride.


“Come what may, you run away from here and live your life to your fullest” Apoorva remembered her boyfriend Manoj’s words as she set out to elope and marry her lover secretly


“I will take you and my two sisters away from this village, Ma.” Apoorva assured her mother Sulochana, looking at her mother’s photo with tears in her eyes as she held the hand of her lover and escaped from the village.

Little was she aware that her father was waiting outside behind the bullock cart alongwith the villagers with knives and swords in hand and confronted the bus in which they were sitting together.


Apoorva’s mother Sulochana, meanwhile was cursing herself within the four walls of her room. She was locked from outside and was feeling helpless.


After an agonizing period of several hours, the doors of her room opened as she found her husband calmly back and resting at his chair.


“What did you do to my daughter Apoorva?” Sulochana questioned him.


“Apoorva did not listen to me. I killed her and that bastard. Afterall, I had to protect the honor of my family” said her husband.


Her other two daughters were speechless.


“If you dare to do anything, I will not hesitate to kill you.” said her husband as he took his pipe and began smoking.


Next day, the village woke up with a gruesome murder of Sulochana’s husband.
Sulochana was sitting quietly in the lock-up.
There was a swarm of villagers as well as press-reporters eager to ask her questions.
The Police were trying their best to prevent them from coming inside.


Sulochana was charged for murder and was taken to the court and produced before the sessions judge.

Sulochana smiled before the judge and said, “My husband killed my daughter Apoorva for the sake of his family’s honor. I killed him for the sake of my daughter’s honor. I know my other two daughter’s lives are at stake. But I had to do this.”

The judge looked at her calmly and started noting down her statement.

“Any regrets.”

“My only regret is that I should have killed my husband, the day he arranged my daughter Apoorva’s marriage forcibly and should have allowed my daughters to escape far away from the house. Apoorva is dead and is happily at heaven with her lover. I fear for my other daughters”

The verdict was ominous. Her other two daughters looked at her with tears in their eyes not knowing what fate lay in store for them. The khap panchayat had already announced a social boycott on her family.


A Story by
Suresh M Iyer

 

Hi Pallavi and Raji, thanks for your feedback

warm regards
Suresh