The business of marriage in Punjab

Rachna Khaira in Jalandhar

Gurnoor (name changed) is sitting, lost in her ‘kaccha’ house in Rama Mandi area of the city. She has quietly kept aside her wedding suit brought by her mother a few months back. The colour of henna on her hands has started fading as she nervously clutches at her dupatta. Shrill, she calls out her mother. She had married an “unknown boy” with whom she traveled all the way to “some place” in Australia. 

“I did well in my college and wanted to study architecture. But my family asked me to clear the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Exam to increase my ‘matrimonial value’. I was told if I got above ‘6 Band’, I would have easily fetched Rs 22-25 lakh for my family. Also, I could get my younger brother settled abroad,” says Gurnoor.

“The marriage was solemnized at a gurdwara in Mohali through an agent. He had hired a few people to act as relatives. We took only one phera around the Holy Guru Granth Sahib,” says the girl as she bursts into tears. 

She took the boy to Australia as promised by her family, but returned after going through hell. “He (fake husband) was into drugs. Though we had a contract marriage, he began to beat me up often out of fear that I might ditch him, making him ineligible for a permanent residence status. He tried to burn me alive once. Scared to my bones, I took the next available flight home without informing anyone,” says Gurnoor. The girl with the help of an NGO is recovering from her traumatic memories. Yet her parents have begun looking for another ‘fake husband’ who would again fetch some ‘quick bucks.’ 

The story of 32-year-old Gagandeep (name changed) is somewhat different. She is from Hoshiarpur. Speaking over the phone from Australia, she said she arrived there after a sham marriage in India around six years ago. “The marriage was organized by a Mohali-based agent in a local gurudwara. The granthi, though opened the holy book, did not recite any hymn,” said Gagandeep. She works as a nurse in a hospital in Australia and the boy too has got a permanent residence status. 

Misleading ads

Dozens of sham marriage advertisements appear in vernacular dailies, clearly revealing a ‘business’ of illegal immigration in Punjab. The ads marked ‘Vyay Kaccha’ or ‘Court marriage only’ invite expressions of interest especially from girls’ parents whose daughters score good grades in IELTS exam (above 6 points) and have dreams to travel to foreign shores. Mobile numbers are marked in bold fonts in such ads, making a mockery of laws and enforcement agencies’ monitoring.

For instance, a call made to a Sangrur-based family revealed that their daughter is a graduate in airlines and tourism management and needs a boy who can take her to Canada. “What will she do here? She has got a 6.5 Band in IELTS and can easily settle abroad. After a few years, she can take her younger brother too there,” said Paramjit Kaur, the mother. But what about the fake marriage? Will her daughter be safe? 

“Yes she will be fine. She herself wants to go abroad and can find a good match there. Nowadays it is difficult to find educated boys with permanent jobs in Punjab,” said the mother. 

Dangerous collusion 

A call to a number mentioned in the ad is forwarded to an immigration consultant firm located at Sector 70 in Mohali. The ad reads: “Jatt Sikh girl IELTS 6 band, Australia jaan wastey kharcha karan waale ladke di lor hai. Vyah kaccha” (Jatt Sikh girl needs a boy who can bear her expenses to settle in Australia. Marriage would be a fake one). 

A woman, identifying herself as Mannat, picks up the phone and says she is from an immigration consultancy. “We have to spend Rs 2 lakh additionally for the event (‘marriage’). Now, we have to show embassy people that ‘your brother’ genuinely got married. We will arrange a traditional marriage (Lawan-Phere) and will even arrange a gathering by hiring around 100 people,” said Mannat. She said if “we manage some people from our side, the cost can be reduced a bit.” 

Another call takes this reporter to an immigration consultant opposite city bus stand in Jalandhar. Though he posed himself as the boy’s relative over the phone, he later introduced himself as an advocate. 

“She would study, he would work. You do not have to pay any dowry. She can do a course of her choice abroad. The deal is mutually beneficial,” said the ‘advocate,’ adding he recently got such a marriage done two days ago. 

Family rift, unemployment 

The division of family holdings, including agricultural land, has fuelled an obsession to seek fortunes abroad. Prof Lakhbir Singh, chairperson of Pahal NGO, has done a survey on the literacy patterns in Hoshiarpur. His findings: not only boys but girls too are obsessed with settling abroad. Continuing with one’s academic studies is an easy excuse to achieve the objective. 

“They can travel abroad only on a study visa if they have uninterrupted study. This is also a reason why Hoshiarpur records a better sex ratio and the highest literacy rate in the state,” says Singh. Girls are made to study as an investment for securing a fortune for the family, he says.

The temptation is so strong that many girls enter into sham matrimony more than once by taking divorce. Rakesh Aggarwal, Regional Passport Officer in Chandigarh, says it is difficult to check the authenticity of such cases. Scrutinizing each application of a divorced applicant may cause harassment to genuine individuals, he said. 

Authorities indifferent, almost

Kirpal Singh Badhungar, chief, Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), accepts that the matter is serious. “I will discuss it with the state government to initiate criminal action against those who post such ads in papers,” said Badhungar. 

Punjab State Women Commission chairperson Paramjit Kaur Landran initially termed the problem as personal matter of families. Later she said she would look into it. “Such a marriage is a mockery of our sacred religious practices and can be termed sacrilege. Also, it is a violation of the Hindu Marriage Act and can invite criminal action. I will ensure speedy action against people who publish such ads,” said Landran.