KANPUR: A woman refused to tie the knot with a man in Kanpur after he failed to get a toilet built at his residence.
Neha, who had to be married in a mass ceremony, pestered for the need of a toilet at the groom’s house since the marriage was fixed, but the family did not keep its promise.
Neha said she was inspired to take the step by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Clean India Mission’, which aims to create awareness among people for need of cleanliness at public places and use of toilets.
“They had promised to build a toilet but did not fulfil their promise. And nowadays, everywhere, even in villages, having a toilet is important. When our Prime Minister has taken an initiative towards this, then the public should also take advantage of it,” said Neha on Sunday.
Neha called off the wedding four days before the scheduled wedding date, which forced the relatives and family members to rush to find a new suitor.
She got married to Sarvesh, who had a toilet at his house, at a mass wedding ceremony organised by a local Non-Governmental Organisation on Sunday.
“We were a bit disturbed when she refused to marry the groom. The cards had been distributed and it was now a matter of pride. Then we quickly looked for another groom who had a toilet at his home. One among the five prospective grooms agreed to marry her. He said that she was a bold person,” said organiser of the mass wedding, Sanjay.
Since taking office, Modi has repeatedly lamented the poor state of sanitation and public cleanliness in India, vowing to solve the problems during his tenure of five years.