A 35-year-old woman, who married for a second time post-divorce, was ordered by a 'caste panchayat' of her community to lick spit as punishment in Maharashtra's Akola district, an official said on Friday. The caste panchayat also ordered the woman to pay Rs 1 lakh to it for her act, he said. Showing courage, the woman defied both the diktats and lodged a police complaint. The shocking incident took place last month, but came to light when a case was registered against the unofficial village council, he said.

On a complaint of the victim, who stays in Jalgaon district, an FIR under sections 5 and 6 of the Maharashtra Protection of People from Social Boycott (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2016, has been registered against ten members of the caste panchayat, the official said. The FIR was registered on Thursday evening at Jalgaon's Chopda city police station, under whose jurisdiction the woman resides, and later the case was transferred for investigation to the Pinjar police station in Akola where the incident took place, he said.