UTTARAKHAND: Poverty is the cause of many evils. In Tehri and adjoining areas of Uttarakhand, the practice of selling girls in the name of marriage by poverty-stricken parents is prevalent even today. Beena Rana, a family court counselor in Tehri district, has been at the forefront of the battle against this menace.
“I am constantly engaged in my mission through counselling to remove this practice of selling girls in the name of marriage in the backward areas of Tehri. To my knowledge, there are cases where the same girl was sold more than four times,” says Beena.
She is convinced the age-old practice of selling underage girls in the name of marriage in some inaccessible areas in Tehri district is possible only by spreading literacy. According to her, this menace cannot be eradicated without the involvement of the government.
Beena, who has been representing women in the family court of Tehri since 1997, takes up cases of only family disputes of women, marriage cases, atrocities on women and rape.
She has helped many victims of domestic violence, and atrocities by in-laws. She has counselled more than 80 girls. The case of 28-year-old Priyanka Panwar, who runs a parlour in Muni Ki Reti area of Tehri Garhwal, is an example. Fed up with the atrocities committed on her by her husband, Priyanka at one point of time was on the verge of suicide. She had gone into depression But thanks to Beena’s efforts she got divorced and back in life.
During a petition, Beena complained to the then SP Tehri Tripti Bhatt about the indifferent attitude of the police, “When Priyanka dies, will your police come to her help”?, she told the SP.
Beena herself had a bad marriage. She broke up within two months of marriage. But that didn’t deter her from pursuing studies and earning multiple degrees, including LLB.
“More than domestic violence and assault on women, the crime that has become rampant in Tehri Garhwal and surrounding areas is about the practice of selling women and minor girls in the name of marriage,” says Beena.