Meet Deen Mohammad, 47-year-old and a father of 8 children who has recently tied the knot with a 23-year-old woman only to field her in the upcoming panchayat elections in the state.

Deen Mohammad, a resident of Aklimpur village in Haryana's Mewat district is currently the sarpanch of his village since 2010 but as this seat has been reserved for women, he was disqualified to contest the elections.

Driven by his desire to retain the post, he decided to field his first wife but she failed to qualify as she was illiterate. As per new rules, one has to be educated upto Class 8 to qualify to contest panchayat polls.

Next in the line was Mohammad's eldest daughter-in-law but even she failed on account of the age criteria. Left with no option, Deen decided to marry another girl who had not only passed Class 8 but also met other required criteria to contest the elections.

"My daughter-in-law, who is Class 8 pass, could not contest the election as she is below the age to contest. Similarly, my first wife is also not eligible as she does not have the required educational qualification. So I decided to marry a 23- year-old named Sajida who is eligible for candidature", Mohammad told Mail Today.

Mohammad is said to be a powerful man who commands support of villagers. Confident of another victory, he desperately wanted to retain the seat but was restricted by the new set of rules.

"My mother was the sarpanch of Aklimpur village from 2000 to 2005 and I was also holding the post from 2010 to 2015. I am confident of my second wife's victory," he said.