Father’s death and poverty lead to 17-year-old girl’s child marriage stopped by police

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

After the father, addicted to alcohol, passed away, leaving the family in extreme poverty, the mother, supporting the household through laundry work, arranged the marriage of her 17-year-old daughter. A 22-year-old boy’s proposal came up due to customary practices. Police were alerted, and the child marriage at Shubham Lawns, Beed Bypass, on Wednesday afternoon was stopped.

Amrapali Borde of the Women’s Child Development Committee learned about the marriage around 12.30 pm and contacted Damini team chief, PSI Kanchan Mirdhe. Following instructions, officers Nirmala Nimbhore, Kavita Gavli, Monika Dive, Sunita Naglod, and Borde reached the venue. The bride was getting her makeup done, decorations and cooking arrangements were ready, and seeing the police caused chaos. Verification of birth certificates and Aadhaar cards confirmed the girl was 17 and the boy 22.

-----

Customs prompted haste

Due to poverty and local customs, the girl’s mother arranged the marriage. The boy, Akash (name changed), lost his father four months ago, and relatives insisted marriage must happen within a year of a family death, else three years’ wait is required. Relatives arranged the marriage, taking responsibility for all expenses. Police explained the legal consequences to both families, recorded statements, and issued notices for appearance before the Child Welfare Committee. Satara police beat marshals Sunil Pawar and Sachin Chavan assisted the Damini team.