INSTITUTE OF LAW, NIRMA UNIVERSITY

CRIMINAL LAW- II

THE EVIL OF “HONOR KILLING”

- SHUBHAM RAGHUWANSHI 17BAL050

MAYANK SAHU 17BAL029

ABSTRACT

An honor killing, which is also known as shame killing, is the murder of family members
because of the perpetrators belief that the victim has violated the customs and belief of the
community or religion, generally for reasons such as love marriages, divorce, sex outside
marriages, inappropriate dressing, etc. Men can likewise be the victims of respect killings by
individuals from the family of a woman with whom they are seen to have an unseemly
relationship, or by sharing in gay movement.

Honor killing has been defined by human rights councils:

“Honor killings are acts of vengeance, usually death, committed by family members
against female family members, who are held to have brought dishonor upon the
family. A woman can be targeted by (individuals within) her family for a variety of
reasons, including: refusing to enter into an arranged marriage, being the victim of a
sexual assault, seeking a divorce—even from an abusive husband—or (allegedly)
committing adultery. The mere perception that a woman has behaved in a way that
"dishonors" her family is sufficient to trigger an attack on her life.”

There are a number of young couples or young girls and boys are killed in the name of
customary practices of honor killing. As per customary practices women or girls are the
repository of her families, community honor. Therefore in order to protect the honor of the
family the relatives use to kill dishonored persons under the defense of culture. Mostly women or
girls become victims of the honor killing crime. Every year thousands of women are killed in the
name of honor killing for preserving and protecting the family honor. In modern era though there
are number of national and international legislation available, even then under the name of
customary practices frequently honor killing incidents took place in the society.

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 INSTITUTE OF LAW, NIRMA UNIVERSITY

The thesis is a socio-legal study of Honor Killing with reference to Matrimonial Alliances. It
critically analyses how- the premeditated killing of a girl or woman, and occasionally of her
chosen spouse or partner by her father, brother or a combination of male agnates -perpetrates the
transcendental social tradition of restoring the family's honor, which in their view has been
sullied by the behavior of the particular woman member of the family. This thesis examines why
despite the extra-judicial, extra-Constitutional nature of the crime, however, there are never any
formal complaints to the justice delivery mechanisms or the law enforcement agencies. This
work probes the reason for the consent of the community members and the reasons for social
support for the autocracy of the khap panchayats and similar bodies who perpetrate this violent
tradition. Why is the definition of Honor Killing with reference to Matrimonial Alliances so
inchoate and why is still there no ample political will for this and no comprehensive statute?
What is the legal and social situation in International jurisdictions? Are the given case-laws
mulled over by the Indian Judiciary unable or able shed light towards a solution? Despite a
hermeneutic dedication towards formulating legislations, why are the law-making agencies yet to
draft a proper law? Where does the criminal jurisprudence in our country stand today? Based
upon extensive research and field-study conducted by the researcher, what recommendations or
amendments to the existing law may be considered? This thesis critically examines the problem
and holds forth some practical hypotheses. The reality of Honor Killings with reference to
Matrimonial Alliances still remains a real problem today despite protection by the Constitution
of India including Article 21.

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