During her wedding ceremony when Bulti Bagi, 20, rubbed off her vermilion after getting to know of her in-laws’ dowry demands, no one thought that this act of courage of hers could make a her a guest of President Pratibha Patil in New Delhi.
Bulti Bagi, a resident of Durgapur, West Bengal, comes from a poor family of peasants. The wedding took place last month, for which her family used all their savings and also took a loan from the village moneylender. But they never knew, that the family of the groom will ask for more that the amount agreed upon — Rs 1 lakh and ninety thousands — during the wedding ceremony. Bulti walked out of marriage after the sindoor daan ceremony when Sanjay Bagri, the groom asked for more dowry. He was drunk and wanted all the money to be handed over instantly. Devastated by the dowry demands, Bulti rubbed off the sindoor in front of all the guests and refused to go with Sanjay Bagri. Later, village elders intervened in Bulti’s marriage and endorsed that the marriage should be cancelled and the money should be given back to the bride’s father.
“Her action against dowry-seeking family is commendable and inspirational for all the young women and this is reason the President is so keen to meet her and give her words of encouragement and financial help,” a Rashtrapati Bhavan official said.
“She wants to know about her future plans, because life of a woman whose marriage has been cancelled becomes very difficult in the rural society. She wants her to study further or do a job if she is qualified enough. The President wants her to be self-reliant,” the official added. The President enquired about her from the local administration and would invite her to the Rashtrapti Bhavan soon. President had invited Sarita Mahto, Praveena Khatun and Rekha for similar acts of bravery.