Married off at 10 months, 19-year-old Jodhpur girl moves court

Jodhpur, April 10: Married off at the tender age of 10 months, Urma Bishnoi had to tolerate the tortures of being in a child marriage for 18 years, facing threats when she resisted. On Tuesday, she eventually mustered her courage and moved court to annul the marriage. “I do not accept the marriage. I want to study and make my future,” Urma, now 19, said.

Bishnoi is from Kaparda village of Jodhpur. In 1999, she was married off to a boy of the same village. As she grew up, she refused to accept the marriage. But her in-laws started pressurising her and her family to accept the relationship and even threatened to cut off their nose and ears. Meanwhile, Bishnoi learnt about a child marriage annulment campaign being run by Kriti Bharti, maging trustee and rehabilitation psychologist, Saarthi Trust Jodhpur. She contacted Bharti for annulment of her child marriage and filed a plea in the family court-1 of Jodhpur. (IANS)