THE STAR

February 13, 1999
From Ali Hassan

Bridegroom arrested on way to marriage

A marriage party, instead of heading for Karachi, staged a sit-in on a busy portion of the National Highway in Hyderabad on Friday afternoon.

The sit-in and road block took place when a police party arrested the bridegroom and his friends including a two years old boy.

The marriage party of Mr. Aqeel Rajput, son of Mr. Saghir Rajput, General Secretary of Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Employees Union was heading to Karachi. The party was intercepted by the police who arrested the bridegroom and others who were accompanying him in the car.

At a later stage, when the police and the marriage party had created a scene, the police informed the marriage party that the groom was wanted in criminal cases. The groom, Aqeel Rajput is also the joint secretary of the new city cloth market.

The police also baton charged injuring two persons. Once of the injured was Imran, an 18 years old disabled person. Both received wounds on their heads.

The marriage party with men and women, following the car, blocked the National Highway at Pathan Colony that continued for four hours.

Mr. Saghir Rajput, finally requested the police to allow the groom to have Nikah on the telephone as the brides family would be in grief if the marriage the party failed to arrive at her house in Karachi.

Police neither allowed the bridegroom to have his Nikah on the telephone nor set him free despite the intervention by Sahibzada Shabbir Hussain Ansari a former MNA and a local leader of ruling party.

The marriage party went back to their houses instead of going to Karachi without the bridegroom.