AHMEDABAD: In a first, a priest is facing criminal charges for solemnizing the second marriage of a Hindu man, who wrongly declared himself to be unmarried.

A metropolitan court charged the Hindu man with bigamy for entering a second marriage during the subsistence of his first marriage. The priest, Ravi Arya from Jodhpur, will also face criminal trial for helping the man commit the offence of bigamy. A jail term up to 7 years is prescribed for bigamy.

According to case details, Santoshben Bairva filed a criminal complaint in the metropolitan court on March 12 through advocate

. She sought criminal action against her husband, Hemantkumar Bairva, for marrying his old flame, Mamta Koli, in Jodhpur. Both belong to a village near

in

. Santoshben returned to Ahmedabad after she was thrown out of her matrimonial home and then filed a complaint with the metropolitan court.

Santoshben and Hemantkumar got married in February 2009. She was maltreated by her husband and in-laws and returned to her maternal home on February 7. Two days later, Hemantkumar married Koli in Jodhpur and an

priest, Ravi Arya, solemnized the marriage. Santoshben learned of the marriage when her husband and in-laws visited her in Ahmedabad to convince her to grant him a divorce. They allegedly misbehaved with her and threatened her not to divulge the details of her husband’s second marriage.

As Santoshben filed a complaint, the court ordered police to conduct an inquiry. The police report confirmed that the woman’s complaint was true. They also told the court that the priest admitted to having solemnized the illegal marriage solely upon the couple’s declaration that both of them were unmarried.

On receiving the police report, additional judicial magistrate U N Sindhi said that the offence was prima facie made out against the man, his family and the priest. The court ordered a criminal trial against five persons of Bairva’s family under sections 498A, 506(2), 294B, 120B and 114 of the IPC – for cruelty against woman, criminal intimidation, abusing her, criminal conspiracy and abetment. The husband will face the trial under section 494 of IPC for bigamy and Arya will be tried for helping him.

The court has summoned all accused persons on November 19.