A 15-year-old girl who was allegedly forcibly wedded to a maried man over twice her age in northwest Delhi's Bhalswa Dairy area, has been rescued, policde said today.
The police also arrested the groom, his father, the minor girl's father and two others, including a woman, who worked as mediators in their marriage, DCP (North West) Vijay Singh said.
On February 4, the police got to know about the marriage of a minor girl taking place in Bhalswa Dairy area. They later managed to trace the girl, who lodged a complaint of "forced marriage" naming several persons in the case including her father.
"A case under the Child Marriage Act and IPC Section 366 was registered and the 35-year-old husband was arrested immediately. The man was already married and had two children," Singh said.
During interrogation, it emerged that the the girl's father had borrowed Rs 60,000 and an e-rickshaw from the groom. When he failed to repay, the lender allegedly asked for his daughter's hand.
Later, the groom's father also started pressurising the girl's father, who finally succumbed to their demands. When the girl objected, they allegedly thrashed her and got her married while she was almost in an unconscious state, police said.
After marriage, the girl managed to escape and return home, following which her father sent her back to her in-laws and took Rs 20,000 for that, police said.
On Saturday, the police tracked down the other accused and arrested them, police said.
