23. Villagers' Naked Truth

India practises a dual system of courts administration. One at the village level called the panchayat system and the other at the town level, normal English Law court system. Read here a case of rape and murder at a panchayat court.


Every man in an Indian village was made to strip to his underwear for inspection before village leaders investigating the rape and murder of a woman, police and villagers said today.

Members of the panchayat - or village council - publicly inspected the bodies of about 1,500 men and boys one by one for signs of a violent struggle as a crowd looked on in Boraj village in Rajasthan state yesterday.

"This is a very old tradition of the panchayat," Tara Rawat, the village's elected leader, said by telephone. "We always do this kind of thing if there is this sort of crime."

The disfigured body of a 35-year-old village woman was found on Saturday (Sept 8) night, police said, adding she was raped before being killed.

Every male between 10 and 60 was inspected yesterday, including the panchayat members themselves, Rawat said.

However they found no marks that might connect any of the men with the crime.

Police said the panchayat's actions were separate to their own investigation but welcomed the check - Reuters.

Read here a Malaysian Judiciary shocker.