A 40-year-old man residing in Laxmipur village was taken into custody in Bihar's Siwan for marrying a minor girl. The mother claimed the accused coerced her into marrying her daughter off due to unpaid debts.
The case is being dealt with under the jurisdiction of the Mairwa police station, and the accused has been charged under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The mother claimed that Mahendra Pandey had coerced her into maying her daughter because of unpaid debt. After all, young girls are nothing more than commodities to be sold off right? If you're dealing with an insurmountable amount of debt you can just clear your debt by selling off your daughter.
However, the accused and the minor girl are claiming the mother arranged the marriage and is blackmailing them.
Man Marries Minor Girl
Mahendra Pandey claimed that he got married with the consent of both the girl and her mother. However, he is allegedly being blackmailed by the girl's mother who is demanding money for unknown reasons. Additionally, it has been reported that Pandey had already been married before he married the minor.
As per the statements of the minor girl, she and the accused got married with her mother's agreement and they wish to remain together. The girl claimed that her mother is attempting to trap them after previously arranging everything for them.
However, whether the minor girl consented to the marriage or not should not even be considered in this. An 11-year-old is simply not capable of making such decisions. Children are not developed enough to make such important life decisions. In such cases, whether the child gives consent or not is irrelevant. What is relevant, is that the accused, who is a grown man, chose to get married to a minor despite child marriage being an offence.
Furthermore, children are not commodities which can be sold to pay off debts. If the accused and the minor's allegations are true, it means the mother put her daughter in a dangerous situation for the sake of money.
Siwan's Superintendent of Police, Shailesh Kumar Sinha, stated that Mahendra Pandey, the accused, was arrested under the POCSO Act and Section 363 IPC. The girl was sent for a medical examination, and the investigation is ongoing. She has been returned to her home after Pandey's arrest.
Views expressed are the author's own.
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