Indian-Bangladeshi couple fights for marriage
Desperate husband and wife resist family's legal manoeuvre to separate them, ask high officials to intervene
Now the girl's millionaire businessman father is seeking her deportation, and the desperate couple is pleading with President Pratibha Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to intervene.
Chosen one
"We met on Facebook three years ago and slowly our romance started. I went to Dhaka four times to meet her. I met her and her family. Everyone was happy with me, her father showed my photographs to their relatives and friends declaring that I am the chosen one. Suddenly something went wrong, I don't know what, and her father has turned against us," the 27-year-old Zubair told IANS here.
The 23-year-old woman came from Bangladesh on February 12 this year against the wishes of her family and married Zubair the next day, according to the Indian's version. Her father, Abdus Sabur Khan, then approached the Indian high commission in Dhaka and sought her deportation.
Delhi Police registered a case of kidnapping against Zubair at the Shakarpur police station in east Delhi. The couple filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court alleging they were being harassed by the police and sought protection.
"From March to May this year, the police harassed my family a lot. They would take away anybody from the family for questioning. They registered a case of kidnapping against me. Only the high court gave us relief," added the young man.
On July 21, the high court ruled that no coercive steps should be taken against the couple. The court on September 10 reiterated that the couple should not be harassed.
The police have denied charges of harassment.
In between, the girl's father filed a petition in the Delhi High Court asking the government to deport Shazia to Bangladesh as she entered India illegally. He said her marriage with Zubair was invalid as she was already married in Bangladesh.
Said Shams Tabrez, the advocate for the father: "She is a foreign national and is living in India illegally. She came to India on a forged passport and visa. She should be deported.
"She had got married in 2006 and papers related to that have been submitted to the high court. Her parents are not threatening them. Instead it is the boy who has forcibly kept the girl here," he added.
