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Love Marriage: Still a Taboo in India

The advent of 21st century promised a new era of personal
freedom for the fair sex as well as every one. However the change
in calendar has failed to change the mindset of average parent in
India. The state of Pakistan is derided because of revenge killings
where a family member escapes punishment if he kills the woman
who dares to marry according to her choice. But the situation in
India is not very different. Here the wish of a girl in her own
marriage is still neglected not only by poor and ignorant but by
those who should know better.

Marriage is a decision which affects a person's life most and
restriction in selecting life partner is a regular phenomena in India.
Thus we have Ajit Jogi's daughter, committing suicide in protest
against her father's refusal to let her marry a boy of her own choice.
Mr. Jogi was opposed to the marriage because in his opinion the
boy was not fit to be his son-in-law. This saw him taking his
daughter to Indore from the US where she was registered as a
student because her boy friend followed her there. Earlier he sent
his daughter to the US in the hope that she would not be able to
meet her boy friend there.

This action of Mr. Jogi dispaired his daughter no end and she took
the unfortunate decision to hang herself cutting a budding future
short. Similar was the case of Bibi Jagir Kaur the SGPC president
whose daughter wanted to follow her heart in marrying a boy of her
choice. But her mother had different plans. She promised them that
their marriage would take place after her daughter gives birth to the
baby she was carrying in her womb but she died in mysterious
circumstances and her lover filed a writ in the high court demanding
investigation in to the sudden death of her daughter.

Both the above cases have been taken to illustrate the lack of
freedom that a girl faces at the time of her marriage in India. If the
highly educated and endowed parents behave in such manner, what
about the average Indian who believes in male superiority and
forces his decision on his family members? The right to select the
life partner should not be denied to girls because its their life.
guidance and direction is something different but forcing one's
opinion on the other person should be discouraged. Parents should
understand that the society imposes moral obligation on them to
produce off-springs and educate them properly so that they get
easily assimilated in the society. The job of a parent ends the
moment their ward achieves maturity in thought and deed.

The role should end there. The personal liberty of a person should
be respected by all including the parents and Indians should realise
that in a society where both sexes work alongside the preferred
way of marriage is by self selection. Indians take pride in everything
western. It is time they should also begin to value personal freedom
just as it is done in the developed world.