Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In a rare case, a woman from the Bedia community, a nomadic tribe, has filed a case in the Bhopal District Family Court seeking maintenance from her Thakur husband. The couple got married in 2013 and has two children - a 12-year-old son and an eight-year old daughter. The woman was living with her husband in a district neighbouring Bhopal till 2021.
In that year, she left her home, along with her daughter, and moved to Bhopal, leaving her son in the care of her husband.
According to the woman (28), her husband accused her of infidelity and his behaviour was so threatening and aggressive that she began fearing for her life. She felt that he would kill her if she continued living with him. The woman, who is educated up to Class 12, is working in a private firm in Bhopal to earn her living.
She is so fearful of her husband that she hasn’t revealed her address or even her mobile number to him. The woman denies her husband’s charge that she is having extra-marital relations. She says that being from the Bedia community, she could have easily had relations with more than one man.
But she married out of choice. Shail Awasthi, a counsellor who is handling the case has told Free Press that it is rare for women from nomadic and other tribal communities to approach courts for settling marital and other disputes of civil nature. “They have their own panchayats of elders from the community, which settle such disputes. However, of late, women from such communities have also started approaching the courts because they believe that they can get justice here,” says Awasthi.
One reason why the woman approached the court, instead of opting for the community dispute resolution mechanism, may be that her husband belongs to another community, the counsellor adds.
