Charkhi Dadri (Bhiwani), February 17
Pooja, a simple and homely girl of the township, had never expected such a drastic situation in her life. After completing her graduation from the local APJ Saraswati Postgraduate College last year, Pooja, eldest of five sisters and a brother, was waiting for her marriage, which had been fixed with a Gurgaon-based boy by her parents.
However, her dreams of a rosy future were smashed as soon as her 'baraat' arrived at her doorstep. “Most of the members of the marriage party, including the groom’s father, were heavily drunk. Soon after arriving at our place, they started misbehaving with our family members,” says Mr Ramesh Kumar, father of the girl.
He maintains that they tried to accommodate the ‘baratis’ as far as possible, but the groom’s relatives and friends crossed all limits of decency. Apart from behaving in a rude and arrogant way, they put forth their demand of dowry.
Moved by her parents unsuccessfully trying to placate her prospective in-laws, Pooja put her foot down and refused to go with her in-laws even after the marriage ceremony was over. “What really agonised me was the stance adopted by my prospective husband. He did not oppose the misbehaviour of his relatives. Neither did he come to me to seek my consent. This was very painful and shattered my faith in him. Following this, I decided to snap the ties,” Pooja said while talking to The Tribune at her home today.
She does not regret her decision and asserts that “Aise logon ke saath aisa hi hona chahiye (Such people should be taught a lesson).”
Pooja’s father observes that the greedy nature of Harish’s father, Shiv Swaroop, was exposed some time after the marriage was fixed, but he continued to hope that the things would improve. But, as it materialised later, it was not to be.
Now, he is proud of the firm stance adopted by his brave daughter. “Pooja gave me the courage to finally say no to the groom’s family. As of now, we are looking for a suitable match for her,” he tells The Tribune.
In this hour of need, the local panchayat stood by the girl’s family. So much so that the panchayat members held the male ‘baraatis’ captive till the dowry items were returned to the girl’s family.
Ms Roshni Sharma, Principal of the school at which Pooja studied, and Dr Gita Sharma, Principal of APJ Saraswati Postgraduate College, appreciated the bold step taken by their former student.
