On Saturday in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh, two women who were separated by forced marriages, divorced their husbands to be together, simply out of love.
Hailing from Hamirpur, both of them fell in love with each other when they were in college. However, as soon as their families came to know about their relationships, they were forced to drop out of the college in the mid-session. Later about 6 years ago, due to societal pressure, they were married off and they had to settle down with their respective man chosen by their parents. They were aged 24 and 26 then.
But, even after all these years of separation, they couldn’t forget each other. They decided to fight a legal battle and finally divorced their husbands, to stay together.
They finally solemnized their marriage at a local temple in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh. However, the registrar had refused to recognize the marriage.
In 2018, September 6, homosexuality was decriminalized by the Supreme Court of India, which struck down section 377 of Indian Penal Code that penalized people for their sexual orientation. However, the law of India fails to recognize same-sex marriage or civil partnerships.
The lawyer of these two women, Daya Shankar Tiwari said to HT, “Registrar RK Pal has refused to register the marriage on the ground that there was no government order on same-sex marriage.”
Pal, who retired from service on Monday, December 31, last year, said, he failed to register the marriage because there was no such provision and that same-sex marriages are not allowed in this country. “We don’t even have an online proforma for it,” he mentioned.
However, the two women are staying together and won’t lay any claim to their marital properties.
Due to rejection and humiliation, which comes both from parents and society, it becomes difficult for these lesbian couples to live a peaceful life. According to the report, between 1995 and 2003, 22 young women in same-sex relationships in Kerala committed suicide.
In the name of love, let the RAINBOW shine brighter.