Latest news with #Hattis
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- First Post
2 Himachal brothers marry same woman: What is polyandry? Is it legal?
Two brothers in Himachal Pradesh, Pradeep and Kapil Negi, have tied the knot with Sunita Chauhan in a ceremony attended by hundreds of relatives and villagers. The men, belonging to the Hatti tribe, carried the centuries-old tradition of polyandry in the Shillai village of the Sirmaur district. The trio say the union is consensual. But is the practice legal in India? read more A woman in Himachal Pradesh has married two brothers of the Hatti tribe. Sunita Chauhan has tied the knot with Pradeep and Kapil Negi of the Shillai village in the Sirmaur district. Celebrating the centuries-old tradition of polyandry, the two brothers and the woman publicly held the nuptials. The trio say they have willingly entered the alliance. Let's take a closer look. What is polyandry? Polyandry refers to the practice of having more than one husband at a time. The custom, known as 'Jodidara' in Himachal Pradesh, is followed by the Hattis and some other communities in the lower Himalayas. The practice is also called 'Draupadi Pratha' after the Mahabharat's Draupadi, who married five brothers – the Pandavas. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Besides villages in the Trans Giri area, the tradition is prevalent in Jaunsar Babar, a tribal area of Uttarakhand and Kinnaur, a tribal district in HP. Two brothers marry same woman in Himachal The wedding of two brothers with the same woman in Himachal Pradesh's Trans-Giri area of Sirmaur district has caught national attention. While it is not an unusual affair for the locals, the custom of polyandry among the Hatti tribe has surprised many across the country. Grooms Pradeep Negi and Kapil Negi of Shillai village married their bride, Sunita Chauhan, a woman from the nearby Kunhat village, in a ceremony that kicked off on July 12 and lasted for three days in the Trans-Giri area, as per a PTI report. Videos from the ceremony, being celebrated with local folk songs and dances, have gone viral on social media. Hundreds of villagers and relatives from nearby regions were part of the celebrations. Pradeep works for the Jal Shakti Department, while his younger brother, Kapil, is employed abroad in the hospitality sector. 'This was our joint decision, it's a matter of trust, care and shared responsibility. We followed our tradition openly because we're proud of our roots,' Pradeep told The Tribune. VIDEO | Himachal Pradesh: Two brothers of the Hatti tribe tied the knot to a woman in Shillai village, with hundreds of people witnessing the marriage solemnised under the anachronistic tradition of polyandry. The ceremony began on July 12 and lasted for three days in the… — Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 21, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'We've always believed in transparency. I may live abroad, but through this marriage, we're ensuring support, stability and love for our wife as a united family,' Kapil said. Sunita said she was aware of the tradition and decided to marry the brothers without any pressure. 'This was my choice. I was never pressured. I know this tradition, and I chose it willingly. We have made this commitment together, and I believe in the bond we have formed,' she was quoted as saying by the newspaper. How common is polyandry in Himachal? The Hatti community, present in the Himachal Pradesh-Uttarakhand border, has been practising polyandry for centuries. It was declared a Scheduled Tribe three years ago. Almost three lakh people belonging to the Hatti community live in about 450 villages in the Trans-Giri area of Sirmaur district. Five cases of polyandry have been reported in Badhana village in Trans-Giri over the past six years, reported PTI. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Experts say the tradition of polyandry started as a bid to avoid the division of ancestral land, to ensure no woman remained widowed and to maintain unity in families. Sometimes, women are 'expected' to take the brother of the man they married as their husband due to a lack of resources. A woman in Jamna village of Sirmaur was told by her husband to tie the knot with his brother when he grew of age. The woman told India Today she used to pack her brother-in-law's lunch when he was in school. She said there was abject poverty when she first came to her marital home 25 years ago. 'There was just one woollen sweater and one pair of slippers. So, my mother-in-law and I shared them. When a sweater and a pair of slippers were being shared, I obviously had to be shared,' the woman, now in her 40s, said. ALSO READ: What is solo polyamory? How is it different from traditional polyamory? STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Are such marriages legal? Indian law does not permit polyandry. However, it allows for the protection of the customs and traditions of its many tribes. The Hatti community is governed by the Hindu Marriage Act. As per NDTV, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has protected the custom of polyandry among the tribe under 'Jodidar Law'. Children born out of these 'joint-marriages' are adopted under Wajib-ul-Arz, a record of customs and traditions within a village, which gives sanctity to"Jodidaran Prata". 'The name of the father gets into panchayat records through Wajib-ul-Arz, and that works for all official purposes,' Kundan Singh Shastri, general secretary of the Central Hatti Committee, told India Today last year. With inputs from agencies
Time of India
20-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
2 brothers, 1 bride: Hatti youth revive polyandry in HP
Pradeep (left) and Kapil Negi (right) with their bride, Sunita Chauhan (centre) KULLU: A woman has married two brothers in the remote trans-Giri region of Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district, drawing cheers from the local Hatti tribe for upholding their traditional ways. Pradeep and Kapil Negi, brothers from Shillai village, wed Sunita Chauhan of Kunhat village in a three-day ceremony that ended on July 14. The trio shared the wedding stage, danced to traditional folk music, and received blessings from village elders as hundreds of relatives and locals looked on - in a rare public affirmation of the ancient custom of polyandry. Pradeep works with Jal Shakti department. Kapil is employed in the hospitality sector overseas. Sunita is a trained technician from an industrial training institute (ITI). "This is not just a marriage - it's a moment of pride," said Hira Singh, a relative of the grooms. "Our educated youth have shown the courage to embrace what many keep secret. They've set an example." Polyandry remains a socially accepted practice among the Hatti community, which numbers about 300,000 in Sirmaur and is spread across five tehsils and 154 panchayats, including Shillai, Sangrah, Kamrau, Rajgarh, and Nohradhar. Amichand Kamal, president of Kendriya Haati Samiti said, "Polyandry was the norm in tribal societies as it protected land holdings and avoided widowhood. A woman has more freedom-she can choose her husbands and leave them without stigma."What made this wedding stand out wasn't the custom - but its visibility. "Polyandry may seem primitive to outsiders, but it's legal in our context. Usually these marriages happen quietly," Kamal said. "But this one was public. That makes it powerful." The tradition was once widespread across tribal belts like Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur. But as nuclear families grew and youth migrated toward city jobs, the practice withered. "It has nearly vanished in Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur," said Shamsher Singh, a research scholar on folk art from Lahaul-Spiti. "But in trans-Giri and Jaunsar-Bawar of Uttarakhand, it survives, largely because of the Mahabharata's cultural imprint." Many Hattis believe they descend from the Kauravas or Pandavas. "That belief still echoes in our valleys," Singh said. That belief is more than a custom - it's a legacy. Once in a while, that legacy walks down the aisle to a folk tune.
India Today
19-07-2025
- General
- India Today
Two brothers, one bride: Himachal village keeps alive age-old polyandry
One bride and two brothers. Yes, you read that right! A village in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district kept alive the age-old tradition of polyandry, wherein a woman married two men who are brothers, despite the practice not being legally recognised in Negi and Kapil Negi, two brothers from the Hatti tribe from Shillai village, married Sunita Chauhan from Kunhat village, in a ceremony held in the Trans-Giri area, which lasted from July 12 to 14, and witnessed by hundreds of people. advertisementPradeep works in a government department while his younger brother Kapil has a job abroad. The throuple said they took the decision without any pressure and got consent from their families. A video of the marriage has surfaced on social media. The polyandry marriage has sparked a widespread discussion on social POLYANDRY IS CHERISHED IN HIMACHAL VILLAGES AND NOT ACROSS INDIA?Despite polyandry being illegal in India, the practice remains prevalent in several villages of Sirmaur district. The tradition is also alive in Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti districts in Himachal Pradesh, and some parts of neighbouring Uttarakhand, though in some villages there, the practice is slowly from the Hatti tribe argue that the marriage remains intact, even if worse was to befall on one of the two men. Known locally as 'Jodidaran' or 'Draupadi Pratha', after Draupadi of the Mahabharata who had the five Pandavas as her husbands, polyandry ensures that family properties remain intact across the Hattis, polyandry not only remains a cherished part of their cultural heritage, but is also a means to sustain their lives in a world full of Hattis, having recently been granted Scheduled Tribe status, view polyandry as a crucial marker of cultural identity. However, the shift towards modern values and urban lifestyles poses a challenge to the continuation of the anachronistic an interview with last year, Kundan Singh Shastri, general secretary of Hatti Central Coimmittee, believes 'Jodidaran' will die a slow death as more villagers become educated and shift to cities for Hattis are governed by the Hindu Marriage Act and for official purposes. However, there are provisions in Indian laws to protect the customs and traditions of other tribal to the recent polyandry marriage in Sirmaur district, Ransingh Chauhan, a lawyer, said the practice has been prevalent in the region for decades and stressed it was legally recognised by the Himachal Pradesh High Court under the 'Jodidar law'."Hundreds of marriages happen through polyandry and other age-old traditions. Media highlighted the marriage in Shillai prominently and they should not be astonished as this is a regular phenomenon. The practice is being done to ensure that families stay united and lands are not divided among themselves," Chauhan, a legal advisor for the Central Hatti Committee, told India Today's TV sister channel, Aaj are 154 panchayats in the 1,300-square-km Trans-Giri area, and the Hatti community is present in 147 of reported last year about the instances of polyandry among women in the villages of Himachal Pradesh and how they view the practice, and live their lives with their husbands in the hilly areas.- Ends(with inputs from Dinesh Kanojia)Must Watch IN THIS STORY#Himachal Pradesh
Hindustan Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Himachal govt puts on hold entry fee at Churdhar wildlife sanctuary
The forest department of Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday put on hold its order imposing user charge on visitors to the Churdhar Wildlife Sanctuary in Sirmaur district, officials said. A controversy had erupted earlier this month, with locals alleging that the 'user charge' was imposed by the state government on people going to the Churdhar valley where there is an ancient temple. The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had termed it as a 'fee on religious pilgrimage'. Officials had maintained that the user charge was imposed only on trekkers visiting the Churdhar wildlife sanctuary. People going to the Shirgul Maharaj temple has to pass through some portions of the sanctuary. In an order issued on Tuesday, deputy conservator of forests, Shimla Wildlife Division said, 'It has been decided to keep in abeyance the order regarding collection of charges in view of numerous representations received from various stakeholders including religious organisations, local residents and citizens in this regard.' The officer said the decision to impose the user charges was taken to address environmental and sanitation concerns but it has come to light that the order has raised apprehensions among devotees and local people regarding accessibility to Churdhar temple, a significant religious site located in the sanctuary. Therefore, the order shall remain suspended till a comprehensive model is developed that considers exemptions for religious pilgrims and establishes a fair and transparent charging mechanism for other users, the officer said. Earlier, the Hatti Samiti, the principal organisation of more than three lakh Hattis living in Trans Giri area of Sirmaur had opposed the entry fee from devotees coming from other states to visit the ancient temple of Lord Shrigul Devta situated on the top of Churdhar peak. In a letter addressed to chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, the Samiti had demanded that entry fees should not be taken from the devotees. According to the fixed slabs, Himachal residents had to pay ₹20 per person, non-Himachalis ₹50 and foreigners will be charged ₹200. The officials said trekkers, hikers and campers had to pay ₹50 to ₹100. The charges were set at ₹10,000 to ₹15,000 per day for movie and documentary shoots, ₹3,000 per day for wedding shoots, ₹200, ₹300 and ₹400 for tenting (Indian citizens), ₹500 per tent per day for foreign citizens and ₹100 for travelling by mule and horse.
