As reports about the increasing number of rape cases emerge from Haryana, the Panchayath members and authority blame girls and see child marriage as the only solution to reduce the number such incidents in the state.

The Panchayath members also see television and films as the cause for the increasing number of rape cases.

"I believe this is happening because our youth are being badly influenced by cinema and television. I think that girls should be married at the age of 16, so that they have their husbands for their sexual needs, and they don't need to go elsewhere. This way rapes will not occur," Sube Singh, a Khap Panchyat member of Haryana, said according to IBN Live.

Haryana had seen nearly a dozen rape cases in less than a month. The latest was Saturday's incident in which a 16-year-old Dalit girl was raped by two men from the same community after which the girl immolated herself.

As the number of rape case in the state are on a rise, police on the contrary said that the number of rape incidents has come down this year as against in 2011.

In September, a girl was allegedly raped by 12 men in Harayana. Unable to withstand the humiliation, the girl's father committed suicide. The girl's family rebuked the inaction of police by keeping the body in the mortuary for five days. The body was moved out only when the police took action against the accused.

To contact the editor, e-mail: