The Uttar Pradesh State Women Commission has sought a report from Baghpat district administration on diktats issued by a village panchayat banning love marriages and not allowing women below 40 years to go to market alone.
"The Commission has sought an immediate report from Baghpat district magistrate in this connection," official sources said.
The panchayat at Asara village in Bagpat district of Uttar Pradesh has reportedly banned love marriages, barred women below 40 years of age from going out for shopping and girls from using mobile phones on the streets.
The panchayat also ruled that when women leave their homes, their heads must be covered. The diktats were issued during a meeting of the panchayat held on July 11.
The panchayat banned love marriages and said those doing so would not be allowed to live in the village.
Superintendent of Police Baghpat V.K. Shekhar had said they have come to know about such diktats by the panchayat and ordered an inquiry by the district intelligence unit into the matter.
However, local residents claimed that it was not a diktat, but a decision taken with consensus of 36 communities living in the village.