Notorious for their diktats prohibiting same 'gotra' marriages, the Khap panchayats or caste councils of Haryana have got support from Congress Member of Parliament from Kurukshetra, Navin Jindal, who has praised them for rendering yeoman service to the society.

In a letter to Khap representatives, Jindal, who is also an industrialist, acknowledged the existence of these panchayats since the time of great rulers like Ashoka and Harshvardhan and said that these panchayats had always given a 'new direction' to the society.

Declaring his support to them, he showered encomiums over these panchayats saying they had been rendering yeoman service to the society by resolving people's problems even before the present day legal system came into existence.

Image: Congress MP Navin Jindal