Nowadays one can read a lot about fraudulent marriages in different daily newspapers in various parts of the country. In some cases young boys are blackmailed by professionally criminal families who have notorious track record of prostitution and in some cases innocent and gullible girls of good families are blackmailed for marriages.
Once that girl of ill-repute becomes a part and parcel of that ‘gentle family’, she starts her vicious and devilish game in the family. It is reported that those girls, in particular, their parents develop “objectionable videos” and pictures of every sister of the emotionally cheated young chap. In some cases, it is reported that they develop those videos and pictures by dint of force. They take every advantage of the simplicity of the gentle parents of the emotionally cheated young man and allegedly blackmail them and threaten them to upload such videos and pictures on internet if they do not marry their daughters and sisters with people of bad repute and in most cases mismatches.
It is revealed that these indecent and amoral girls use heartless tactics to grab property, emotionally cheat young men and dissociate their sisters who objected to their indecent relationship. It is seen that shattered and tormented parents do not apply their mind. They fear of gossip, if those cunningly crafted videos and pictures are uploaded on internet, then their hard earned reputation will be destroyed.
It is well-established truth that divorce ratio is alarmingly rising in our society and I suspect that the divorce rate of these marriages will be higher simply because the parties have been forced into marriage. By forcing people to marry, are we not also increasing the divorce rate and the resulting societal dysfunction which we were trying to avoid to begin with by encouraging the marriage? Ultimately, what can be the success rate of people forced to marry for the wrong reasons?
Let us protect the institution of marriage for a healthy society, how can we do this if people are blackmailed to the altar or the justice of the peace? In other words, if our society compels people to marry for the wrong reasons, aren’t we doing society and our children a disservice by imposing a life plan on them that may not be in their best interests? Should morality be legislated by our government?
HASHIM ABRO
Islamabad