A 25-year-old Dalit man died on Sunday, five days after he was attacked at his Madhya Pradesh village by the relatives of his wife, who comes from an upper-caste family.
Om Prakash Batham married Shivani Jha in January despite her family’s opposition. He was attacked on August 19 at Harsi village in Bhitarwar. The attack came after he returned to the village to visit his parents after months of living in Dabra town.
According to police, Shivani’s father, Dwarka Prasad Jha, allegedly led the assault along with relatives Rajesh alias Raju Jha, Uma Ojha, and Sandeep Sharma. They stormed into Om Prakash’s house, dragged him out, and thrashed him with sticks and rods. Shivani, who tried to intervene, was also injured in the attack.
“When the woman’s family had first made the complaint in 2023, she was traced. However, she was an adult and wanted to stay with her husband. They began to stay together for the next few years and returned for Raksha Bandhan, when the man was assaulted,” said a senior police officer.
For six days, Om Prakash fought for his life in a private hospital in Gwalior. He died on Sunday evening.
At their modest home in Harsi, Om Prakash’s mother broke down while recounting the horror. Sitting on the mud courtyard, she wept, “He had only come to see me. He wanted to spend Raksha Bandhan at home like every other son. They had done a court marriage with the consent of the woman.”
The family’s ordeal had begun much earlier. When Om Prakash and Shivani first eloped in 2023, police intervened, but she declared her wish to live with him. The couple lived together in different locations in Madhya Pradesh even in Uttar Pradesh, before finally solemnising their marriage in court this January.
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But the move came with a heavy penalty. The Harsi village panchayat imposed a fine of Rs 51,000 on Batham for marrying outside his caste and ordered villagers to boycott the family. “The girl’s father had said Om Prakash should never set foot in the village again,” said a police officer.
Ajay Singh Sikarwar, station in-charge of Belgada, said a murder case has been registered against 12 accused, including Shivani’s relatives. “We had earlier registered a case of assault. Now, after Batham’s death, a case of murder has been lodged. The prime accused, Dwarka Prasad Jha, is absconding,” he said.
