Groom cries after being ‘kidnapped and forced to marry at gunpoint’
A terrified groom was reportedly held up at gunpoint and forced into marriage in India.
The shocking video, taken in Bihar, east India, shows a Vinod Kumar crying as the marriage rites are performed over him and his new bride, metro.co.uk wrote.
A relative repeatedly wipes tears from his eyes during the ceremony while he appears to beg for his release.
When he refuses to apply vermillion, a red pigment, onto the girl sitting opposite him her relatives can be heard saying, ‘We are only performing your wedding, not hanging you’, reported NDTV.COM.
The 29-year-old engineer had reportedly gone to work and was kidnapped at gunpoint by the bride’s brother, claims which are now being investigated by the Indian authorities.
When he did not turn up at home as planned, his brother said that he became worried and contacted the police.
Only then did he get a call from a withheld number telling him about his brother’s ‘Pakadua Vivah’— forced marriage.
Kumar had met the unidentified bride at a mutual friend’s wedding and was ordered to marry her by her family.
Although it is rare for grooms to be kidnapped and it is unknown why this forced marriage took place, grooms can be abducted for the families to business arrangements or for the bride’s family to avoid offering a large dowry to attract a good husband.
Almost 3,000 reports of grooms being abducted were made in India in 2016 but none of these marriages were annulled.
Since the wedding, Kumar said he has been forced to seek police protection after getting calls from the girl’s family telling him to accept her as his wife.