4-12-2023 (NEW DELHI) In a shocking incident, a newly appointed teacher named Gautam Kumar in India faced a harrowing ordeal when gunmen forcibly abducted him from his school. The incident took place on November 29, when three or four armed men entered the premises and kidnapped Mr. Kumar at gunpoint.
One of the abductors, identified as Rajesh Rai, had a specific demand: he wanted Mr. Kumar to marry his daughter. Faced with the threat of violence, the teacher reluctantly agreed to the forced marriage. However, the police intervened just in time and managed to rescue Mr. Kumar, causing the kidnappers to flee and evade arrest.
The 23-year-old teacher had recently cleared the Bihar Public Service Commission exam and was excited about embarking on his teaching career. However, his joy quickly turned into a nightmare when he was confronted by the armed gunmen at his assigned school, as reported by the Times of India.
Rajesh Rai, who operated a brick kiln, allegedly orchestrated the kidnapping in order to coerce the teacher into marrying his daughter. Initially, Mr. Kumar resisted the demand, but he eventually succumbed to “physical violence” inflicted upon him, according to NDTV. Disturbing photographs showed the teacher and his “bride” dressed in traditional wedding attire, with a pained expression on the groom’s face.
The family members of Mr. Kumar staged a protest by blocking a road for several hours, demanding his safe release. In response to their plea, the police conducted a raid at Rajesh Rai’s residence on November 30, successfully rescuing the kidnapped teacher. However, the kidnappers managed to escape the scene before they could be apprehended.
Mr. Kumar, in a statement recorded in court, expressed his fear of potential retaliation from the bride’s family. Unfortunately, such incidents are not unheard of in Bihar, where families of young women allegedly resort to kidnapping young men with secure jobs to bypass exorbitant dowry demands.
Just last week, an Indian court declared forced marriages of this nature as “null and void.” However, it appears that the kidnappers in this case were unaware of the legal ruling.
