FeatureRegional

What happened when a teenage boy forced to marry his brother’s widowed wife?

New Delhi : In a bizarre shocking episode in Bihar, a minor boy committed suicide barely a couple of hours after being forcibly married to his elder brother’s widow, a mother of two and 10 years older to him.

The incident took place in Ramna Vinobanagar village in Bihar. The 15-year-old Class 9 student hanged himself from the ceiling of his house.

According to reports, an FIR has been lodged for abetment of suicide and child marriage and the boy’s father Chandreshwar Das and the parents of Ruby Devi – the woman to whom the teenager was forcibly married – Ram Pravesh Das and Mutur Devi have been arrested.

Neighbours claimed that the family had buckled under pressure from the women’s side and was forced to agree to the marriage, against his will.

Chandreshwar said that Ruby was married to the boy’s elder brother Satish Das in 2009 and the couple had a daughter and a son. Satish, who worked as an electrician in a private firm, died of electric shock in 2013.

Following Santosh’s death, the company which he worked had given the family a compensation of Rs 80,000 out of which Chandreshwar transferred Rs 27,000 to the account of Devi.

Meanwhile, a campaign was launched against child marriage on October 2 by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar during his ongoing state-wide tour.