Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Solominization of a marriage of a 32-year-old widow and mother of a 12-year-old boy with the man she accused of rape has earned her ire of her family and social ostracization. Notably, her 'marriage' to the rape accused was solomanised by the cops in Multai police station when she had gone there to lodge a complaint against him.
The photograph of her so-called marriage at the police station surfaced on social media bringing dishonor to her in the village. Facing backlash , the woman after a few days again approached police and lodged a complaint against the accused Satish Sonare, 40. Police have arrested him and the court has sent him to judicial remand.
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According to reports, the woman was married to one Raj Kumar of Sonali village under Multai police station in 2010. The man died during Covid-19 lockdown in 2020. Later the woman came in contact with Sonare, a distant relative of her in-laws.
The women approached Multai police last week complaining that Sonare had sexually assaulted her multiple times. However, the police instead of registering her complaint, allegedly asked her to settle the matter and made her come to a compromise with the accused. The cops did not stop there, as they went ahead and allegedly 'solemnized' their marriage even as they do not have any legal right to do so.
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The photographs of the so-called newlywed couple surfaced on social media. The marriage of the widow, a rape victim, with the accused did not go down well with the locals and also her family members. Neither her parents nor In-laws came out in her support, rather they maintained distance from her. The woman even faced the threat of being ousted from the village.
Advocate Deepak Bundele, Betul, said police do not have authority to solemnize marriage, the cops instead should have brought the accused to book. He further informed that the cops on that day were busy organizing a farewell for their boss and so they made the woman wait for hours at the police station before they made her arrive to a compromise with her rape accused and finally solemnized her marriage to the accused.
Betul SP Nischal Jharia told Free press that whenever the woman came to the police station, the cops did what was needed in her favor. The cops gave a patient hearing to her and mediated and tried to bring the two parties to a compromise, said Jharia. However, after four days, when the woman returned with her complaint, the cops registered a rape case against Satish Sonare and arrested him. Unfortunately, the photographs surfaced on social media, which brought dishonor to her, said the officer, adding that police will do their utmost to support the victim.
