Indore: Two minor sisters rescued from being forced into marriage

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Two minor girls were rescued by the flying squad of women and child development department from their father on Thursday who was allegedly forcing them into marriage.

A flying squad of the department was tipped off about the preparations of the wedding of the sisters aged 15 and 17 years, following which the administration intervened, in-charge official, Mahendra Pathak said.

The girls, who are residents of Devguradia area, were supposed to marry two youths from Dewas district, he said.

When the squad asked the girls' family to produce their age proof, their father started making excuses and claimed that the certificates were kept in his ancestral home in a village far away, the official said.

Their birth records were later brought in from their school and they revealed that the girls were 17 and 15 years old, Pathak said.

As per the law of the land, the marriageable age for boys is 21, while for girls, it is 18. People violating the law have to undergo two years of rigorous imprisonment or pay Rs 1 lakh fine or both under The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.

The girls have alleged that their father tortured them in an inebriated state every now and then, and even tried to throw them from the top floor of their house, Pathak said.

The sisters have been shifted to an Aashray Sthal for the time being, he added.