The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Gulf money a bane for Jagtial's newly-wed girls

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, May 16, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Gulf money a bane for Jagtial's newly-wed girls

By K.M.Dayashankar

Every month at least fifty to seventy such cases are being reported in fifteen police station limits of Jagtial division, five to ten such cases in Jagtial town alone

JAGTIAL (KARIMNAGAR DT): A newly-wed girl was deserted by her husband after two months of her marriage in Hasnabad on the outskirts of Jagtial town. Reason; the groom collected the dowry of Rs 2 lakhs from his in-laws and migrated to the Gulf countries in search of employment. He has settled in the Gulf for the last two years and refuses to accept his wife suspecting her fidelity.

Another newly-wed girl from Aravindanagar locality in Jagtial town is being tortured by her husband and in-laws not for additional dowry but as they wanted to get rid of her because she is not `beautiful.' After four months of marriage, the husband migrated to Singapore, made some money and after his return wants to get rid of the girl and marry some other person.

Incidents common

These incidents are common in the Jagtial division in general and Jagtial town in particular, one of the prosperous divisions of Karimnagar district with the command area under the SRSP project and many immigrants in Gulf countries. Every month at least 50 to 70 such cases are being reported in 15 police station limits of Jagtial division, including 5 to 10 such cases in the Jagtial town police station alone.

Police sources said that of late these cases were on the rise due to the prevailing drought conditions and migration of youth to the Gulf countries. The grooms after their marriage migrate to Gulf countries with the help of the dowry amount.

Unable to undergo mental agony and distance from their husbands, the newly-wed girls usually return to their parents house and stay till the husband arrives. Meanwhile, the in-laws of the girl start harassing her for not staying with them and serving them and blame her character.

The executive director of Rural Education and Community Health (REACH), a voluntary organisation in Jagtial, K Nanda Kishore, said that the incidence of husbands deserting their wives had increased in the division due to the sudden prosperity of the husbands.

The police said that the young girls visit police stations not to lodge complaints against their husbands but to seek counselling for their husbands from the police. Accordindly, the Jagtial town SI, P Prashanth Reddy, launched a counselling programme and reunited about 10 families.

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