Cuddalore juvenile ties nuptial knot on girl at bus stop, held for child marriage

The 17-year-old boy who studies in a private polytechnic college tied the knot on the 16-year-old girl at a bus stop in the presence of onlookers; video of the incident went viral

The Cuddalore District police on Tuesday arrested a juvenile under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act on charges of tying the nuptial knot on a school girl at a bus stop in the district recently. A video of the incident went viral on social media following which the police and the District Child Protection Unit launched an investigation.

Police said the 17-year-old boy studying in a private polytechnic college tied the knot on the 16-year-old girl at a bus stop in the presence of onlookers. Based on an inquiry, the police arrested the boy and sent him to a juvenile observation home while the minor girl was taken to the office of the Child Welfare Committee for counselling.

Meanwhile, the police arrested P. Balaji Ganesh, 51 for allegedly circulating the video of the incident on social media platforms. A case was booked against him under relevant sections of the Juvenile Justice Act, Prevention of Women Harassment Act, and SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act [as the boy and girl belonged to the Scheduled Castes].