Palghar tribal woman 'sold' for Rs 3 lakh under marriage pretext; 4 booked

Palghar, Jan 7 (PTI) Police in Maharashtra’s Palghar district on Wednesday registered a case against four persons over the alleged “sale” of a 20-year-old tribal woman for Rs 3 lakh under the pretext of marriage and her harassment, an official said on Wednesday.

The woman, who belongs to the Katkari community, alleged that she was forced to marry a man from Nashik in May 2024.

The man and his mother allegedly paid Rs 3 lakh to two middlemen, who then trafficked the young woman and facilitated her marriage, the official said, citing the FIR.

The complainant said she was physically and mentally tortured in her husband’s family and was frequently targeted with casteist slurs. She alleged that her husband assaulted her and deprived her of timely meals when she was pregnant.

The woman returned to her mother’s house in June 2025 after the birth of her son. The matter came to light on January 6, when the accused attempted to take her child away, leading to police intervention forcibly, the official said.

A case has been registered against the man, his mother and the two middlemen at the Wada police station under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, said inspector Dattatray Bajirao Kindre, adding that an investigation is underway. PTI COR NR