IRON LADY IROM SHARMILA’S MARRIAGE IS A CLASSIC EXAMPLE TO SHUN VULGAR OSTENTACIOUS MARIAGES IN INDIA

Getting tied up in a marital knot is a usual affair and thousands of men and women get married daily, worldwide.

 

In India marriage in the urban areas especially is indeed an extremely costly and show off of money power, wealth, clout and (of) influence affair when the rich and affluent get an opportunity to exhibit their clout by spending several lakhs and crores of rupees for just a single night. Several such highly expensive marriages exhibiting huge vulgar ostentation are therefore the order of the day.

 

On the one hand our political leaders talk so much about the well being and welfare of the poor, down trodden and the economically deprived sections of the society compounded with adopting austerity measures but when it comes to marrying their own sons and daughters they spend lavishly exhibiting their political and wealth clout and nobody is there to question them. Everybody knows that during the demonetization phase, one of the former ministers’ of the Karnataka government allegedly lavishly spent hundreds of crores of rupees in his daughter’s wedding, raising eyebrows and lot of controversy in the political corridors of the ruling and opposition parties and the media. What hypocrisy ?

 

The rich and affluent just waste crores for a single night in such ostentatious marriages. Even the people of the middle classes on an average spend more than fifty lakh in a marriage ceremony of their daughters and sons with dowry being a separate affair to account for. Why I am talking about these expensive marriages is because just few days ago a woman icon and a fighter in real sense who just a year ago gave up her 16 year old hunger strike while fighting against the draconian law called AFSPA namely IRON Lady Irom SHARMILA was married to her London based NRI Mr. Desmond in Tamilnadu’s Kodaikanal court where not a single relative of both husband and wife were present except friends who can be counted on fingers. Both Iron Sharmila and her husband Desmond walked from their place of stay – to Kodaikanal office of marriage registration in Dindigul district of Tamilnadu and got tied up in the marital relationship without any fanfare and vulgar ostentation.

 

Irom Sharmila and Desmond were knowing each other for the last 6/7 years and after the relationship between the two drew closer and trustful they finally decided to marry. Congrats to both of them. This marriage got an adequate coverage in various leading national dailies as Irom is a celebrity having undergone a historical 16-year-old hunger strike demanding the repeal of AFSPA, which according to her is a draconian act allegedly responsible for several innocent killings in the North Eastern region of the country. Irom was forcibly fed with liquid diet by the administration despite her refusal. She is in fact an inspiration for the Democratic women fighters of the country who are desirous of leading long term peaceful protests against injustice.

 

I met IROM SHARMILA two months ago in New Delhi along with her husband Desmond at Lodhi Estate, New Delhi in a conference of the newly formed Green Body by leading environment scholars, social activists of repute and those against corruption called National Green Alliance. On the advice of journalist and green activist Suresh Nautiyal, her name was unanimously okayed for the chairmanship of this organization amid cheers and applauds. This simple marriage ceremony of an internationally popular iconic personality Irom with her one time trusted friend Desmond a British national of Indian origin without any fanfare and vulgar ostentation is a “NAZIR” a classic example for those people who waste lakhs and crores in a single night to satisfy their futile ego and fabricated urge. What do you say friends ?

 

SUNIL NEGI