Doctors have kept him under observation,' said a police official. Singh has been admitted to a hospital in Rohtak town.

The victim, who works in Delhi with a transport company, married Shilpa of Siwah village near Panipat town, about four months back.

His village panchayat (council) was against the marriage as it said the couple from the same gotra (clan) cannot be married.

Representatives from Singh's village even went to Shilpa's village Thursday to persuade her family for a mutual divorce.

However, the girl's family declined.

Lalchand, grandfather of Shilpa, said: 'We are totally against this divorce as it would destroy our daughter's life. The groom's family was well aware about our gotra before the marriage and we had not kept anybody in the dark (about it). Rather they should try and convince their panchayat.'

A member of Singh's family said: 'We had also approached the local police and demanded security from them. But they did not pay any heed to our pleas. Ravinder was under depression since yesterday (Thursday).'

Village councils in Haryana, particularly the 'khap' (caste) councils are notorious for illegal verdicts against individuals getting married in the same clan. In recent years, such couples have been hounded out of villages, attacked and in some cases even killed, at the behest of village councils.