The couple has been boycotted for last one year ever since they started a WhatsApp group with the intention of bringing together community members and convincing them to end the practice of women having to prove virginity before wedding. (Representational Image)A COUPLE from the Kanjarbhat community in Thane district has approached the police after they faced social boycott for opposing the practice of women undergoing virginity test as part of wedding rituals.
Ambernath residents Vivek and Aishwarya Tamyaychikar have been boycotted by their community for the last one year ever since they started a WhatsApp group with the intention of bringing together community members and convincing them to end the practice of women having to prove that she was a virgin prior to the wedding.
The community’s caste council levies a hefty fine upon women who “fail” these tests and ostracise their families.
According to a police complaint filed by Vivek on Tuesday, when his grandmother passed away on Monday, they were banned from attending her funeral by local community leader Sangam Garuge.
Vivek went on to file a complaint against Garuge and three others at Ambernath police station under the Social Boycott (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act. Based on the complaint, four persons from Ambernath town were booked.
On Wednesday, 15 to 20 women from the community, filed a police complaint against the couple. “The women claimed that the community practices no such tradition and that Vivek Tamyaychikar is defaming them,” said S D Ghuge, Senior Inspector of Ambernath police.
