In the month-old kidnapping case of a 26-year-old woman reported in Phase 1 here, now the police have decided to summon the priest who had solemnised the marriage of the couple in Lucknow.
The investigating officer said, “The marriage certificate which was mailed to the police belonged to Arya Samaj Mandir at Harsh Vihar in Ali Gang, Lucknow. We need to verify the documents which were submitted by the couple at the time of marriage. On that basis, the priest will be called to join the investigation.”
“We will verify the marriage certificate which has been recovered,” said Rajiv Kumar, station house officer of Phase 1, SAS Nagar.
While giving information about the procedures of solemnising marriages in temples, Prem Sharma, president of the committee of Lakshami Narayan Temple, Phase 3B2, SAS Nagar, said, “Without taking necessary documents and affidavit from parents of couple about get married, they solemnise no marriage. While solemnising a marriage in the temple, we always ask to provide the identity proofs of both the boy and the girl and also take an affidavit from both the families.”
He added that certificates of date of birth and any identity proof was taken on the priority basis to check the age of both and also to confirm that both are not married earlier differently.
{{/usCountry}}He added that certificates of date of birth and any identity proof was taken on the priority basis to check the age of both and also to confirm that both are not married earlier differently.
{{/usCountry}}Sharma added: “In case of a poor couple, we take the affidavit of the sarpanch of the village they belong to or ask them to bring an affidavit from the magistrate. We do not provide the certificate of marriage as the certificates can be given only by those temples which are approved by the government,” he said.
A case was registered on March 6, 2014, following Gangandeep Singh the husband of the ‘victim’. Arvinder Kaur alias Monica, a resident of Phase 1, SAS Nagar, had been kidnapped when she went to buy vegetables outside her house, claimed Gagandeep.
After a week of registering the case, a marriage certificate was received by the police in which it was mentioned that the woman had married one Rajnish Kant - the alleged kidnapper - a native of Gurdaspur without taking divorce from her first husband Gangandeep singh.
The police have already decided to drop the kidnapping charges after the woman’s marriage certificate with the alleged ‘kidnapper’ was procured.
The police have decided to book the woman and the man under relevant sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC).