BELAGAVI: Tilakwadi police in Belagavi arrested a man and his mother for allegedly coercing a minor girl into marriage to settle a Rs 50,000 loan. Two other family members implicated in the case remain at large.
The accused, Vishal Pundalik Dhawali (22) and his mother Rekha Pundalik Dhawali – residents of Mangai Nagar, Vadgaon, were taken into custody after the 17-year-old victim filed a complaint. The FIR also names Vishal’s father and brother.
The victim, originally from Saundatti taluk, had relocated to Belagavi with her mother after the death of her father. The duo had been living with relatives who were facing financial difficulties. To assist them, the victim’s mother borrowed Rs 50,000 from Rekha, pledging her gold earrings as collateral.
When the mother was unable to repay the loan within the agreed time frame, Rekha allegedly started putting pressure on her to marry off her daughter to Vishal. Despite repeated assurances that she would repay the loan, Rekha and Vishal continued to put pressure on her. On September 17, 2024, they allegedly kidnapped the girl from Vadgaon and took her to Athani the next day. There, she was forcibly married to Vishal at a temple.
The incident remained undisclosed for several months until the victim mustered courage to approach the police on January 17, 2025. Acting swiftly, Police Inspector Parashuram Pujeri arrested Vishal and Rekha, while efforts are on to apprehend the others. The police revealed that the victim’s mother, who works as a security guard at a construction site, had taken the loan three months before the kidnapping.