Girl refuses to wed drunk bridegroom
LUCKNOW: Amidst anti-liquor protests by women in the state, a girl refused to tie the knot in Narayani village of Kasganj district on Saturday when the groom reached the venue in a drunken state.
The girl’s family have now approached the panchayat demanding compensation for the expenditure incurred on wedding preparations and for the mental agony caused to the bride and her family.
According to reports, preparations were on in full swing at the house of Banwari Lal, a farmer belonging to the Lodh caste, for the marriage of his daughter Anju (19) with Gajendra, a resident of a neighbouring village.
Gajendra is employed at a private firm in Bhiwani (Haryana).
After dinner, the ‘baratis’ were getting ready to sing and dance on the songs being played by Rangshala – a horse-driven buggy having loud music system and female dancers. The buggy also has seating arrangement for the groom.
When enthusiastic women and children tried to have a glimpse of the groom, they saw the groom falling on the ground repeatedly in an attempt to sit on the Rangshala.
Village pradhan Kunwar Pal Singh, an eye-witness to the incident, said the groom could not sit on the Rangshala and his speech was also slurred. “His behaviour showed he was heavily drunk,” Singh said.
As soon as Anju came to know of this, she refused to marry Gajendra. “I am not going to allow my life to be ruined by marrying a drunkard,” she told her parents. After initial hesitation, Anju’s family accepted her decision.
The girl’s family called the local police and took the matter to the panchayat demanding return of gifts and cash that they had given to the bridegroom and his family as dowry. They also demanded payment of the cost towards other preparations.
“We found the bridegroom under the influence of liquor though he said someone had mixed liquor in his cold drink without his knowledge,” station officer of Dholana police station Ashok Kumar Singh told HT.
“However, no case has been registered in the matter as both the parties are trying to solve the issue by returning the money spent by both the sides. The marriage has been called off,” he said.
Anju’s refusal to tie the knot with a drunkard is being seen as another example of growing awareness among the women in villages.
Women are up in arms against liquor shops after the Supreme Court ordered the shifting of vends from national and state highways.
“We have seen liquor destroying several families and Anju’s decision not to marry a drunkard has made all of us proud,” said Anju’s father Banwari Lal.