Varanasi: Timely intervention by the police and mediation by elders of the community helped bring a dramatic wedding-day standoff in Varanasi’s Lohta area to a peaceful solution, with the bride eventually marrying her longtime lover on Friday.The high-voltage drama unfolded in Chhitauni village on Thursday night when the bride, whose marriage was arranged by her father, was preparing for the ‘jaimal’ ceremony with the groom.At that moment, her lover, a youth from Bhathauli village under Cholapur police station limits, reached the venue and insisted that he be allowed to marry her instead.Shocked by his arrival, relatives of the bride and villagers allegedly caught hold of the youth and began assaulting him.In a dramatic turn, the bride stepped down from the stage, shielded the youth from the crowd and declared that the two were in a relationship for six years.On learning about the relationship, the groom decided to withdraw and left the venue with the wedding procession.Police personnel from Kotwa outpost and Lohta police station reached the spot to prevent any escalation.Station house officer, Lohta, Digambar Upadhyay said the bride’s father later admitted that he was aware of his daughter’s relationship and had initially agreed to their marriage.However, he got upset after the youth sought three years’ time to settle down financially before marrying her. The woman’s father then fixed her marriage with another man without informing his family about his daughter’s relationship, police said.Tensions rose in the village as the guests returned without the wedding taking place. Police called senior members of the community to mediate.During the talks, the woman’s father said that the incident caused public embarrassment and financial loss to his family and demanded that the youth marry his daughter immediately.Meanwhile, the couple submitted a joint application to police stating that they wished to marry of their own free will.After hours of discussion, both families agreed to the alliance, and the couple got married at a temple on Friday evening in the presence of family members and community elders. Police said the families also decided to get the marriage formally registered soon.
