COIMBATORE: A 23-year-old man has been arrested for marrying a 16-year-old girl.
The Thudiyalur all-woman police said the accused, Kathiravel Anand, a native of Karnataka, was in a relationship with the minor girl, a school dropout, for the past couple of months.
A police officer said Anand had moved to Vinobhaji Nagar at Mettupalayam from Karnataka for work.
“He fell in love with the girl, who was living with her mother after her father’s death, a few months ago.
They eloped a few weeks ago, got married in a temple and moved to a house at Narasimanaickenpalayam.” The officer said the girl’s mother hadn’t lodged any compliant as Anand was from the same community.
“But Anand’s relatives alerted the locals about the relationship and the latter informed the Child Welfare Committee about the marriage.” The Child Welfare Committee subsequently lodged a complaint with the Thudiyalur all-woman police, who with the help of the Mettupalayam police arrested Kathiravel from his workplace at Karamadai on Tuesday.
“We have booked him under various sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Prevention of Child Marriage Act, 2006.
We have rescued the girl and lodged her in a government home for counselling and a few medical tests.,” the officer said.