Two minor girls, who were about to be married off, have been rescued over the past 24 hours from nearby Yadadri district, police said today.
Following information that the girls aged 15 and 16 were to be married off, 'SHE Teams', a wing of the state police, stopped the weddings in Bibi Nagar and Pochampally mandals and counselled the parents of the girls and the bridegrooms, police commissioner Mahesh M Bhagwat said.
The 15-year-old was to marry a 26-year-old man yesterday while the 16-year-old was to get married to a 22-year-old this morning, but the plan was thwarted, Bhagwat said.
The police official appealed to the public against performing marriages for minors below the stipulated age and said it was a crime.
Issuing a warning to the priests, wedding card printers, elders and supporters of child marriage, Bhagwat said the parents of such children would be held responsible for any such marriages.
Further, he said the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 would be invoked on the parents of such minors and if found guilty, the elders would face a minimum two years imprisonment and fined Rs 1 lakh.
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