Father celebrates daughter’s separation from ‘harassing husband’

In a first-of-its-kind, the father of a married woman had brought her home after separation from her husband with pomp and gaiety. Unable to withstand the torture undergone by his daughter, he marked the separation by rallying her home amidst a cheerful atmosphere in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

The incident, which happened on October 15, was posted by Prem Gupta, the father, on social media. Gupta performed the marriage of his daughter Sakshi Gupta with Sachin Kumar in April last year. However, Sakshi began facing harassment from her husband and in-laws within a few days of her marriage.

Sakshi said that she came to know that Sachin was married to some other woman before her but that she remained with her husband, with an intention to continue the marital relationship. However, she could not bear the harassment from him and told her parents that she would like to separate from him. Surprisingly, Sakshi’s father and other family members agreed with her and made preparations to bring her back home, amidst celebrations.

Throughout the rally, there were drumbeats accompanied with burning of crackers. “Daughters are the most precious gifts in any family. If they are put to torture in their in-laws’ house, they should be brought back home respectfully and given a secure place,” Prem Gupta said.

Sakshi filed a petition seeking divorce from Sachin, he added.

The incident evoked positive response from netizens, many of whom hailed the father for breaking the social taboo associated with separation from husband. Many middle-class families consider separation from husband and in-laws as a crime and would try to hush up the matter but Prem had done it with aplomb.