A 36-year-old woman from the Hardoi district in Uttar Pradesh has allegedly left her husband and six children to elope with a beggar. The woman’s husband, Raju, has filed a police complaint under Section 87 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which pertains to the kidnapping of a woman. Authorities have begun an investigation and confirmed that the woman has been located.
According to Raju’s report, he lives with his wife, Rajeshwari, and their six children in Harpalpur, Hardoi. He observed that a 45-year-old beggar named Nanhe Pandit frequently visited their locality and interacted with Rajeshwari. They also had conversations over the phone.
Raju recounted, “At around 2 pm on January 3, my wife, Rajeshwari, told our daughter Khushboo that she was going to the market to buy clothes and vegetables. When she did not return, I searched everywhere, but could not find her. My wife left with the money I earned from selling a buffalo. I suspect that Nanhe Pandit took her away,” requesting police intervention.
The police are actively searching for Nanhe Pandit. Senior officer Shilpa Kumari confirmed that the woman has been found and that her statement is being recorded.
An FIR has been filed under Section 87 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The law states, “Whoever kidnaps or abducts any woman with the intent that she may be compelled, or knowing it to be likely that she will be compelled, to marry any person against her will, or in order that she may be forced or seduced to illicit intercourse, or knowing it to be likely that she will be forced or seduced to illicit intercourse, shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine. ”
The law also clarifies, “. . . whoever, by means of criminal intimidation as defined in this Sanhita or of abuse of authority or any other method of compulsion, induces any woman to go from any place with the intent that she may be, or knowing that it is likely that she will be, forced or seduced to illicit intercourse with another person shall also be punishable as aforesaid. “
