Thousands of weddings were held on the auspicious occasion of 'Basant Panchami' on February 16, but one of them, in particular, has caught the public imagination in Rajasthan.
Suspended Rajasthan Administrative Service officer Pinky Meena, who had been in jail for the past one month for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 10 lakh from a highway company, has married a judge from the Rajasthan Judicial Service!
Pinky Meena, who was the Bandikui SDM till mid-January, had recently got bail from the Rajasthan High Court. In her bail petition in the High Court, Pinky had cited her marriage on February 16 as the reason behind her request. Interestingly, the government lawyer had opposed the bail even then claiming that the investigation may get affected as Pinky is getting married to a Rajasthan Judicial Service officer.
The preparations for marriage got underway in Pinky Meena's house as soon as she got bail for 10 days from the Rajasthan High Court. On February 11, the ritual of Peeley Chawal was held while the Baan Sankdi ritual was held on February 12. On Valentine's Day on February 14, it was the turn of the Lagan-Teeka. Finally, on February 16, the couple was married off in full splendour in Dausa district.
Five days after her marriage, on February 21, Pinky Meena has to surrender in court.
Pinky Meena was arrested on January 15 for allegedly seeking a bribe of Rs 10 lakh from a construction contractor for a contract involving the Delhi Mumbai Express Highway, which comes under the Bharatmala project. The Rajasthan Anti-Corruption Bureau acted against her on the basis of a complaint and caught her red-handed in the bribery scam that has rocked Dausa for the past several weeks.
Since mid-January, Pinky Meena had been a prisoner at the Central Jail in Jaipur's Ghatgate area.
After she surrenders in court on February 21, her case will come up for hearing on February 22.