In a barbaric act, an 18-year-old Meos Muslim girl was allegedly raped on the night of her nuptials by no less than her husband, her two brothers-in-law and a cousin brother. The provocation? The inability of the bride's side to provide a motor bike as part of the dowry.

The incident took place on July 7 at Nuh in Gurgaon district of Haryana. The dairy of events that culminated in the alleged rape of the girl is horrifying. The villagers recounted that on the marriage day the bride was accompanied by a close friend who also belonged to her husband's village, Badwa.

According to the statement collected by the villagers, the bridegroom's relatives started teasing the newly married girl in the Maruti car they were travelling to village Badwa from Firozpur.. The drove silently to their own village, but what happened later, was beyond anyone's imagination. The bride was made to pose like a motor bike and while her two brothers-in-law and a cousin brother sat astride her, her husband raped her. This incident was ... recounted in the First Information Report (FIR) filed on July 17 at the Nuh police station.

Word of the incident spread. The girl's maternal grandfather brought her home (They) didn't file the FIR report as the custom in the village is to take revenge after a crime... The medical examination was not conducted on the girl as it was not a custom to do so. The villagers are now waiting anxiously to hear the verdict from the panchayat... Local police officials stated that they have filed a case and say that they have little role to play when the case is being handled by the village panchayat. The accused men did not turn up on July 21 when the panchayat met...

(Source: The Times of India, 24 July, 1997)