What started as a mischievous joke played by the bride's friends revealed a bitter truth that led to the marriage being cancelled.



The bride called off the marriage after the groom reportedly failed to count the currency notes given to him by her friends, minutes before the most important ritual of “saptapadi”—the seven steps around the fire.



The incident took place at Maritar village in Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia district on Saturday.

Asha, a graduate, was to be married to Ashok (both names changed), a resident of the Buxar district in Bihar.



After a few initial rituals, the groom was taken to a room by the bride's friends, where they gave him some currency notes and asked him to count.

“It was just a playful joke,” said one of the friends.

Much to the shock and dismay of the girls, the groom failed to count the notes. It raised their suspicion that he might be illiterate, and they informed the bride of the incident.

The bride then refused to go ahead with the marriage.



The elders from both sides intervened and tried to persuade the bride to change her decision, but she remained adamant.



A panchayat was also convened to settle the matter, but ultimately, the wedding party returned without the bride as she refused to budge.



The groom’s parents were also reportedly made to return the gifts and cash the bride’s family had given for the marriage.



The incident comes

barely weeks after a bride walked out from her marriage ceremony in the state’s Kanpur Dehat district after the groom failed to answer a simple mathematical question.

