A woman who was brutalised by her nephew was stripped and her hair chopped off on the orders of an all-woman 'panchayat' on the charge of having physical relations with the man.

The 'panchayat' at Dengidoh village in Jharkhand's Koderma district held the woman guilty, though she is the alleged victim. The crime came to light after she approached the police on August 24. Eleven people have been booked, said officials.

"My nephew has been torturing and sexually abusing me for the last three months as my husband was out of town all this while," said the woman. She added that the women with whom she had shared her ordeal complained to the 'panchayat', accusing her of having an illicit relationship.

"Apart from being publicly shamed, the woman was brutally thrashed," said Koderma SP Dr M Tamil Venon, quoting the complainant.

Her husband said, "I had returned home just a day ago and did not know anything about it. When I saw my wife being dragged from our house by some women, I tried to stop them. However, they refused to listen to me."

Village head Rajiv Pandey also condemned the assault.

Zee Media Newsroom