The Hindu : It was 'sati' in M.P., says report

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Aug 18, 2002

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It was 'sati' in M.P., says report

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI AUG. 17. The National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) has concluded that Kuttu Bai, who immolated herself on the funeral pyre of her husband in a Madhya Pradesh village on August 6, had committed sati and was a victim of the anti-woman reactionary-obscurantist propaganda being carried out by right-wing groups in different parts of the country.

Echoing the conclusion of the National Commission for Women which also took the view that Kuttu Bai had committed sati, the NFIW team — which visited Patna Tamoli village in the Panna district of Madhya Pradesh recently — has linked it to the glorification of an earlier incident of sati in the village 50 years ago. Also, according to the NFIW report, the superstition that sati would help in putting an end to drought in the area provided a setting for the incident.

Led by the CPI MP, Ajoy Chakravorty, the NFIW team visited the area on Wednesday and found that some members of Kuttu Bai's family and villagers egged her to commit sati. With news spreading of a possible sati in the area, people from surrounding villages gathered around the pyre at the designated hour; rendering it practically impossible for Kuttu Bai to back out even if she wanted to, the report said.

The NFIW team felt that there was enough time for the police to tackle the situation. against the erring officials.

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