VISHVENDU JAIPURIAR
Hazaribag, Nov 27: The Police on Saturday stopped the marriage of a 13-year-old girl after the friends of the girl bride reported the incident to the police in the Koderma district.
Upon receiving the information, police reached the venue and arrested the parents while taking the girl into their custody. Administrative officials said that the girl will get admission to Kasturba Vidyalaya.
Sources said that the girl is a resident of Barsotiyavar village under the Koderma police station. Her friends made a call to child helpline 1098 after which the police stepped in. The girl was handed over to the child welfare committee.
The girl said her father is a worker on a private bus. As he is a drunkard, her mother and grandmother wanted to marry her early to send her away from home. They solemnised her marriage which was to take place on Saturday. She was to be married to a 22-year-old boy in Chaparkhor village under Jamua police station in Giridih.
She said that she studies in class VII in a government school. Talking about her family, she said that she has an elder brother who is 17 years old and a younger one who is nine. She also has a younger sister aged 12.
When the police team led by the Koderma police station officer-in-charge raided the house, the girl’s mother and grandmother forced the girl to hide. Duo handed over her younger sister to the police to ensure that the marriage takes place without any hitch. However, the girl’s younger brother told the truth to the police and she was handed over to the committee.
“I want to study and don’t want to go home,” she told the police and committee members. Shailesh Kumar of the committee said that the girl will get admission to Kasturba Vidyalaya so she can continue her studies.
