By IANS,
Dhaka : Unable to repay a loan taken after cyclone Aila hit his village, a man has been ‘coerced’ into marrying off his 13-year-old daughter to a 75-year-old moneylender in Barisal, southern Bangladesh.
The marriage between Akhinur, 13, and 75-year-old moneylender Lokman Sikder was solemnised Sep 4, as the teenager’s father Azhar Bepari could not return Tk 4,000 ($ 58) he had borrowed in May this year.
The residents of Banimordhon village allege that Sikder took advantage of the financial crisis of the poor family and forced Akhinur’s parents to marry her off to him for not being able to repay the loan.
Sikder’s first wife Ayesha Bibi objected to the marriage. She demanded that her husband should be punished.
Police say they sent a team to catch Sikder but could not trace him.
Akhinur’s mother asked her to get ready for marriage with the person whom she used to know as ‘Lokman Nana’ (grandfather).
Bepari told The Daily Star that his six-member family, including two sons and two daughters, was badly affected by cyclone Aila. He had borrowed money, but could not repay even the interest on the loan.
He alleged that Sikder had told him to clear the loan immediately along with the accumulated interest or marry Akhinur to him in lieu of the outstanding amount.
The Imam (cleric) of the local mosque has denied that he conducted the marriage. Kazi Abdur Razzak, local marriage registrar, says he did not register it.