BAREILLY: Living away from their families for three years, all that a young couple here wanted was to return home and reconcile ties with relatives . But the khap panchayat , which had exiled them from their village for having an inter-caste relationship , decided this was not to be. Enraged that its diktat was defied, the panchayat objected to their return, forcing the young couple and their one-year-old child to flee back to Delhi.Twenty seven-year-old Naeem and 24-year-old Phooljahan was ousted from Tilmas village under Meerganj police station on the orders of the khap panchayat in 2014 after it was revealed that the couple was in an inter-case relationship. A case of abduction was subsequently filed by Phooljahan's family against Naeem only to be taken back following the panchayat's order. The couple later fled away to Delhi and married. On April 24 this year, they returned to the village to attend the marriage ceremony of Naeem's sister.Peeved by this defiance, the khap panchayat, on Tuesday, ordered that its diktat be "upheld" and the couple be thrown out of the village again. The two families also entered into a confrontation, leading to violence and the girl's family allegedly torched a hut. According to eyewitnesses, nearly two dozen people led by Phooljahan's brother Ashfaq attacked Naeem's residence and resorted to vandalism. The couple was taken out of the village by a police team, and they boarded a bus back to Delhi. Speaking with TOI, station officer at Meerganj police station, Dalveer Singh, said, "The villagers were anguished to see the couple defying the panchayat's diktat. The two families were at loggerheads again leading to violence."

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