A 15-year-old boy, forced to marry his widowed sister-in-law who is 10 years elder to him, committed suicide in Bihar’s Gaya district.
According to media reports, the boy, identified as Mahadev Das, a class IX student, took his life after he was forced by his family and village elders to marry 25-year-old Ruby Devi. She has two children from Mahadev Das's deceased brother Santosh Das who passed away in 2013. The deceased was only seven years old when his brother married Ruby Devi.
According to the boy's father Chandeshwar Das, who has now been arrested, Mahadev was distressed after he was forced to marry the woman who used to take care of him like her own children.
According to police, Mahadev was forced to marry his sister-in-law to ensure that Rs 80,000 which was received as a compensation after the death of his elder brother who died of electrocution is not deposited in the account of Ruby Devi. Her family wanted that the entire amount be deposited in her name, but Chandeshwar refused.
Chandeshwar, who deposited only Rs 27,000 in her account, managed to work out a compromise formula after the village panchayat interfered in the matter, according to which Mahadev would marry his sister-in-law.
Besides the father of the deceased, the widow's mother too has been taken into custody.
The incident comes even as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar urged people to end the practice of child marriage a few days ago.
