In a shocking case, a man in the Indian state of Bihar, working as a teacher in a government school, was abducted on Friday (Dec 13) and was forcefully married to a girl at gunpoint. According to reports, a dozen unknown men abducted the teacher, identified as Avnish Kumar, on the way to work. He was allegedly in a four-year-long relationship with the woman.&nbsp;

The incident was another so-called "Pakadwa Vivah" of Bihar, where unmarried men are forced to marry at gunpoint.&nbsp;&nbsp;

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Avnish, a resident of Bihar's Begusarai district was kidnapped by the family of Gunjan, a resident of Lakhisarai district. Both of them were allegedly in a relationship for four years, but Avnish, who recently became a teacher after clearing the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam, refused to marry her.&nbsp;

Gunjan claimed that their relationship was "serious" and both of them frequently used to visit hotels together and also shared stays at Avnish's house in the Katihar district.&nbsp;

"He had promised to marry me and start a family. He had also taken me to his school. We were in love for four years. But when I informed my family about it, and we approached him for marriage, he refused. This was unacceptable," Gunjan alleged.&nbsp;

Three days before Avnish's kidnapping, Gunjan's family caught the duo together in Katihar. Both were forcefully married in a temple.&nbsp;

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After getting married, Gunjan, along with her family, went to Avnish's home in Rajaura, where he reportedly managed to escape. His family refused to accept Gunjan leading her to file a complaint demanding justice.&nbsp;

Avnish denied all the claims of prior relationship saying, "I had no love for that girl. She harassed me by repeatedly calling and stalking me. On the day of the incident, some men kidnapped me in a Scorpio vehicle while I was on my way to school. They beat me, forcibly applied vermilion, and tried to perform rituals. I protested throughout".&nbsp;

The teacher has since a police complaint alleging kidnapping and physical assault.

(With inputs from agencies)

In a shocking case, a man in the Indian state of Bihar, working as a teacher in a government school, was abducted on Friday (Dec 13) and was forcefully married to a girl at gunpoint.

In a shocking case, a man in the Indian state of Bihar, working as a teacher in a government school, was abducted on Friday (Dec 13) and was forcefully married to a girl at gunpoint. According to reports, a dozen unknown men abducted the teacher, identified as Avnish Kumar, on the way to work. He was allegedly in a four-year-long relationship with the woman. The incident was another so-called "Pakadwa Vivah" of Bihar, where unmarried men are forced to marry at gunpoint. Also read | India is the 'mother of democracy': PM Modi marks 75th anniversary of the adoption of Indian Constitution Avnish, a resident of Bihar's Begusarai district was kidnapped by the family of Gunjan, a resident of Lakhisarai district. Both of them were allegedly in a relationship for four years, but Avnish, who recently became a teacher after clearing the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam, refused to marry her. Gunjan claimed that their relationship was "serious" and both of them frequently used to visit hotels together and also shared stays at Avnish's house in the Katihar district. "He had promised to marry me and start a family. He had also taken me to his school. We were in love for four years. But when I informed my family about it, and we approached him for marriage, he refused. This was unacceptable," Gunjan alleged. Three days before Avnish's kidnapping, Gunjan's family caught the duo together in Katihar. Both were forcefully married in a temple. Also read | Rahul Gandhi calls 7-year-old child 'young man' in Indian parliament, draws laughter After getting married, Gunjan, along with her family, went to Avnish's home in Rajaura, where he reportedly managed to escape. His family refused to accept Gunjan leading her to file a complaint demanding justice. Avnish denied all the claims of prior relationship saying, "I had no love for that girl. She harassed me by repeatedly calling and stalking me. On the day of the incident, some men kidnapped me in a Scorpio vehicle while I was on my way to school. They beat me, forcibly applied vermilion, and tried to perform rituals. I protested throughout". The teacher has since a police complaint alleging kidnapping and physical assault. (With inputs from agencies)

India: Bihar teacher kidnapped, forced to marry girl at gunpoint

A new report estimates that 29 million women and girls are victims of modern slavery, exploited by practices including forced labour, forced marriage, debt-bondage and domestic servitude.

Report: 29 million girls, women victims of modern slavery

In Pakistan, which has become a hell for women's freedom in the world, there is a clamour for the 'Women's March'. Often women who have been victims of domestic violence, rape, sexual harassment and forced marriage have started protest.

Pakistan: Hearing on case against the 'Aurat March' at Islamabad High Court

In a major jolt to Imran Khan’s vision of a ‘Naya Pakistan’, two Hindu teenage girls of 12 and 14 were allegedly kidnapped, forcibly married off and converted to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh province.&nbsp;

The incident took place when the Hindu community was celebrating Holi.&nbsp;

Hindu community took to streets demanding stern action against the accused involved in the abduction and forced conversion of Hindu girls.

The police, which had reportedly dillydallied in registering the complaint earlier, finally lodged the FIR after the protests broke out.&nbsp;

The priest who got the girls married said it was a voluntary decision of girls to convert to Islam. However, the marriage and subsequent conversion is a blatant violation of the law passed by the Sindh assembly which bars conversion of minors in the absence of their parents.

In 2015, Sindh assembly passed a law to curb child marriages, which enables not just the priests to be arrested but all those who were part of the gathering

Forty eight hours have passed since the incident, yet the Pakistan government is still to take any action.

Imran Khan had recently tweeted that Naya Pakistan was Jinnah's Pakistan that would ensure that minorities would be treated equally, but this incident brings to the fore Imran's hollow assurances given to minority communities of Pakistan.&nbsp;

The situation in Pakistan remains the same as religious minorities continue to suffer due to discrimination and persecution.

In a major jolt to Imran Khan’s vision of a ‘Naya Pakistan’, two Hindu teenage girls of 12 and 14 were allegedly kidnapped, forcibly married off and converted to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh province.

In a major jolt to Imran Khan’s vision of a ‘Naya Pakistan’, two Hindu teenage girls of 12 and 14 were allegedly kidnapped, forcibly married off and converted to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh province. The incident took place when the Hindu community was celebrating Holi. Hindu community took to streets demanding stern action against the accused involved in the abduction and forced conversion of Hindu girls. The police, which had reportedly dillydallied in registering the complaint earlier, finally lodged the FIR after the protests broke out. The priest who got the girls married said it was a voluntary decision of girls to convert to Islam. However, the marriage and subsequent conversion is a blatant violation of the law passed by the Sindh assembly which bars conversion of minors in the absence of their parents. In 2015, Sindh assembly passed a law to curb child marriages, which enables not just the priests to be arrested but all those who were part of the gathering Forty eight hours have passed since the incident, yet the Pakistan government is still to take any action. Imran Khan had recently tweeted that Naya Pakistan was Jinnah's Pakistan that would ensure that minorities would be treated equally, but this incident brings to the fore Imran's hollow assurances given to minority communities of Pakistan. The situation in Pakistan remains the same as religious minorities continue to suffer due to discrimination and persecution.

Two Hindu girls 'forcibly' married off, converted to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh province

Thousands of vulnerable women and girls from northern Myanmar are being trafficked to China and forced to marry, a study said Friday, offering a rare look at an issue that grips the conflict-hit borderlands.

China has around 33 million fewer women than men due to the decades-long one-child policy.

To plug the gap, tens of thousands of poor women from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are sold as brides each year, some going willingly, while others are tricked or trafficked.

In the first research of its kind, a report by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health estimated 7,500 women from war-torn Kachin and northern Shan states have fallen victim to forced marriage in China.

Based on interviews with scores of people who escaped and returned to Myanmar, and others still inside China, the study found that the majority of those trafficked were also forced to carry a child for their husband.

Women leave Myanmar because of "conflict, displacement and poverty" said report author W. Courtland Robinson, while "the male-female sex imbalance in China, especially in rural areas" means demand for a wife is high.

One woman told researchers that she was trafficked into China three times, and each time "pushed into giving birth", said Moon Nay Li of Kachin Women's Association Thailand, who led the field research in Kachin and Shan states.

"Because of political instability, conflict and land confiscation... security for women is a big challenge," she said.

Marriages are often arranged and brokered by the women's own families and village elders, with brides-to-be unable to refuse as they are at the bottom of the social hierarchy.

The youngest women command higher prices of up to $10,000-15,000.

Their matches in China are typically to older, sick, or disabled men in rural areas -- people considered undesirable to the Han Chinese -- while the women's lack of documentation plunges them into a legal limbo.

The study found that women were often "hired" to bear children for their husbands and then forced out or sold on to new husbands to recoup money.

Some women have successful marriages and the issue of consent is complex and varies case-by-case, Robinson said.

But all unions should be entered into without "threat, menace or penalty", he added. &nbsp;

Often daughters "can't say no to their parents", said Moon Nay Li, and feel compelled to go ahead with the marriage once "traffickers and agents have given money to their parents".

Researchers called for Myanmar to end the conflict in Kachin and Shan states, which has displaced tens of thousands of women, and to train anti-trafficking officials to enforce the law and recognise the women as victims.

Thousands of vulnerable women and girls from northern Myanmar are being trafficked to China and forced to marry, a study said Friday, offering a rare look at an issue that grips the conflict-hit borderlands.

Thousands of vulnerable women and girls from northern Myanmar are being trafficked to China and forced to marry, a study said Friday, offering a rare look at an issue that grips the conflict-hit borderlands. China has around 33 million fewer women than men due to the decades-long one-child policy. To plug the gap, tens of thousands of poor women from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are sold as brides each year, some going willingly, while others are tricked or trafficked. In the first research of its kind, a report by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health estimated 7,500 women from war-torn Kachin and northern Shan states have fallen victim to forced marriage in China. Based on interviews with scores of people who escaped and returned to Myanmar, and others still inside China, the study found that the majority of those trafficked were also forced to carry a child for their husband. Women leave Myanmar because of "conflict, displacement and poverty" said report author W. Courtland Robinson, while "the male-female sex imbalance in China, especially in rural areas" means demand for a wife is high. One woman told researchers that she was trafficked into China three times, and each time "pushed into giving birth", said Moon Nay Li of Kachin Women's Association Thailand, who led the field research in Kachin and Shan states. "Because of political instability, conflict and land confiscation... security for women is a big challenge," she said. Marriages are often arranged and brokered by the women's own families and village elders, with brides-to-be unable to refuse as they are at the bottom of the social hierarchy. The youngest women command higher prices of up to $10,000-15,000. Their matches in China are typically to older, sick, or disabled men in rural areas -- people considered undesirable to the Han Chinese -- while the women's lack of documentation plunges them into a legal limbo. The study found that women were often "hired" to bear children for their husbands and then forced out or sold on to new husbands to recoup money. Some women have successful marriages and the issue of consent is complex and varies case-by-case, Robinson said. But all unions should be entered into without "threat, menace or penalty", he added. Often daughters "can't say no to their parents", said Moon Nay Li, and feel compelled to go ahead with the marriage once "traffickers and agents have given money to their parents". Researchers called for Myanmar to end the conflict in Kachin and Shan states, which has displaced tens of thousands of women, and to train anti-trafficking officials to enforce the law and recognise the women as victims.

Thousands of Myanmar women forced into marriage in China: Study

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