Representative image.

ROURKELA: The village of Pamara in Bargaon block of Sundargarh district on Saturday played host to a unique wedding where a man helped solemnise the marriage of his wife with her lover, barely six days after his own arranged wedding with her.

A native of Pamara, 28-year-old Basudeb Tappo had married a 24-year-old woman from Jharsuguda’s Debdihi village on March 4. The wedding had taken place according to the rituals of the farmer community to which Tappo belonged and had no legal sanction.

On Saturday, three young men, one of whom claimed to be Tappo’s wife’s cousin, visited the couple at Pamara. The three were welcomed by Tappo’s family and while two of them left the house to see the village sights with Tappo, the ‘cousin’ was allegedly seen with the wife.

A group of locals, upon learning of this, allegedly descended upon the house and began beating up the lover. The newly married woman then came forward and confessed that they had been lovers. But her relatives had allegedly opposed their match and married her off to Tappo instead. She is the youngest of three siblings. Her parents are no more.

Seeing the turn of events and the circumstances that led to them, Tappo suggested that his wife marry her lover. He then contacted his wife's elder brother and sister and the parents of her lover to convince them of the plan. On Saturday, they all came to Pamara for the wedding which also saw hundreds of bemused guests. This wedding too was solemnised according to the community’s traditions — without legal papers and with the blessings of the members of the community.

“The lives of three people would have been destroyed had I not done this. This was the only solution. Now all of us can be happy,” said Tappo. His mother Sanibari Tappo echoed her son. “Our lives would have become more complicated had this solution not been reached,” she said.

Tappo’s gesture received widespread appreciation. “We will never forget his contribution,” said the woman.

Gajendra Bagh, the sarpanch of Pamara village, said: “When we came to know of Basudev’s decision, we felt that it was the most appropriate thing to do in such a situation. So the entire village came forward to support his wife's second marriage.”

