It wasn’t a typical day at the Rajasthan Women Commission’s office on Thursday. The office was decorated with marigold flowers and happiness as an 18-year-old Jyoti from Jaipur was marrying her love at their office.

The reason for a marriage in their office was her strict family, who was completely against her getting married to 22-year-old Manish. The first reason was them being against the concept of love marriage and second was Manish belonging to a different caste.

Since the time Jyoti had put forward her wish of wanting to get married to Manish in front of her family, they had started to torture her in every possible way. They gave her electric shocks, beat her up, and also chopped her hair, showing their objection.

On Monday, Jyoti fled from her home, approached the commission and filed a complaint against her father and brother. Fearing more torture, Jyoti refused to return home. This is when the commission intervened and decided to solve the matter.

On Tuesday, the commission called up Jyoti’s family and counselled them for 36 hours. “It was tough to convince them. First, it is an inter-caste marriage. Second, Jyoti’s family is narrow-minded. We had to use a number of tactics to make them realise that what they did was wrong and that the girl has a right to choose her life partner,” said the commission’s chief Suman Sharma. She said she didn’t want Jyoti to face any more harm.

After a lot of efforts, the family agreed to visit the commission’s office and meet Manish. The family by the end of Wednesday, agreed and said that they had no objection to the marriage. Thereafter both the families met and decided to get Jyoti and Manish married according to Hindu rituals on Thursday at the commission premises.

Jyoti and Manish
Picture source: Hindustan Times

Jyoti recalled her first meet with Manish and said, “I met Manish at a religious function four years ago. He works in event management and he had helped organise the function. We spoke to each other there for the first time and that’s how our love story began. Everything was fine until I told my family in February this year that I wanted to get married to him.”

Jyoti gave exams for Class 10 this year and says wants to study further and support herself financially. Manish works part-time at a doctor’s clinic.

Congratulations, Jyoti and Manish!