TEARS IN the eyes of Usha have not dried up yet. Her marriage was fixed for Friday. Before she could take saat-phere, her dreams shattered. Instead of barat came the demand of a Maruti car. Unable to fulfill it, the groom’s side cancelled the marriage. Usha’s father Rambaran Jaiswal is still in a state of shock.
Jaiswal said he had fixed the marriage of his daughter with Manoj, a resident of Aashiana, Lucknow. As per the demands, he even gave Rs 2 lakh cash and deposited Rs 2 lakh in Manoj’s name. Apart from it, he spent around Rs one lakh on ornaments and other things. Things were moving smoothly when the groom’s family started demanding a car. An employee in the district industry office, it was too much for Rambaran. He sought the help of his relatives, but in vain.
With heavy heart, he started preparation for the marriage with the hope that good sense might prevail among members of the groom’s family.
Usha, a postgraduate in botany and pursuing her BEd, was also hopeful. The mandap was ready and the guests had arrived and Usha was getting ready with mehndi on her hand for the marriage. But, the barat did not turn up. Instead, a few relatives of Manoj came and iterated the demand for a car. In a true filmy style, Rambaran begged before them. But, they did not relent and the marriage was called off with the barat not proceeding to the guesthouse.
This was too much for Rambaran, who had not yet got over the murder of his youngest son, Raghvendra, in Sultanpur where he was doing B Tech, in September last. Within moments the scene changed. The dhun of shehnai was taken over by the wails of Usha’ s mother. Usha herself could not cry, as her tears seemed to have dried up. At last, Rambaran gave an application to the SP against Manoj’s family.
{{/usCountry}}This was too much for Rambaran, who had not yet got over the murder of his youngest son, Raghvendra, in Sultanpur where he was doing B Tech, in September last. Within moments the scene changed. The dhun of shehnai was taken over by the wails of Usha’ s mother. Usha herself could not cry, as her tears seemed to have dried up. At last, Rambaran gave an application to the SP against Manoj’s family.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Manoj’s mother talking over phone told the HT that the marriage was cancelled because her son was missing. Regarding the demand for a car, she said, “We have already one car, if they are willing to give then it should be in Manoj’s name.” She claimed that her family was receiving threatening calls.
Manoj, a PhD student of IIT-Kanpur, is missing from his home. She even claimed that she had returned Rs 2 lakh through a demand draft to Usha’s family.
Whatever be the result but Usha has nowhere to go. People are flocking to her place for consolation. One Rajeev Gupta Babbi, a social worker, has come forward to help her get justice.