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| A screengrab of a Khap Panchayat - which have triggered a global controversy |
More than 100,000 Britons have signed a petition to put pressure on the Uttar Pradesh Government to protect two Indian sisters, who have been sentenced to be gang-raped by a local Khap Panchayat.
The Khap Panchayat of the Baghpat village handed out the punishment to two Dalit sisters Meenakshi Kumari, 23, and her 15-year-old sister after their brother eloped with a married Jat woman.
The sisters approached the Supreme Court on Friday seeking protection from the Khap verdict.
The incident received intense coverage in several countries from Australia to UK to USA. Time, Mashable, Washington Times, The Daily Telegraph, The independent and Al-Jazeera were some of the publications that took note of the controversy.
In the UK, the issue was reported by almost all major publications prompting British MPs to lobby with their government to put pressure on India to act.
Nadhim Zahawi, who is on the UK foreign affairs select committee, condemned the Khap ruling and urged the UK Foreign Office to intervene.
PTI quoted a British Foreign Office spokesperson saying, UK was committed to working with the Indian Government on addressing violence against women in India.
The media coverage also made nearly 100,000 Britons sign an Amnesty petition condemning the "disgusting" ruling.
The Mirror quoted Amnesty UK's Rachel Alcock saying the sentence had provoked a global outrage.
"There must also be a proper, independent investigation into these barbaric and illegal orders which apparently continue to be issued by the khap panchayat courts," she added.
But she and Ravi eloped later, prompting the Khap Panchayat to pass a vindictive order against his sisters. Besides trying to subject them to gang rape, the Khap Panchayat also said the sisters should be paraded naked with blackened faces to punish them for their brother's actions.