Classmates stop marriage of minor girl in West Bengal

KOLKATA:  A friend in need is a friend indeed. A minor student in West Bengal’s West Midnapore district perhaps realised this on Saturday, when her classmates intervened to stop her from being married off against her wishes.

The class IX students of Golar Sushila High School in Golar noticed that their classmate has not been attending school for the past week. Once they found out that her marriage has been fixed, the students rushed to her house and demanded that she be allowed to return to school. Sensing trouble, the girl’s family secretly took her to the would-be groom’s house through the back door.

When the students came to know about this, they went to the groom’s house and threatened to launch an indefinite protest. In a bid to avoid trouble, the groom’s family handed her over to the agitating students, who then took her back to their school.

The school’s headmaster Suresh Chandra Padia praised the students and said the marriage was avoided only because of their determination. Dipak Kumar Ghosh, the block development officer of Keshpur block, where the school is located, said her family has promised not to marry her off before she turns 18.
The girl’s neighbours said her family decided to marry her off early due to financial problems.