Bride elopes with lover after ‘varmala’ ceremony in UP’s Unnao      

Commotion ensued at a wedding ceremony here when the bride allegedly eloped with her lover shortly after the varmala ritual, police said on Monday.

The incident took place on Saturday night at a village in Purwa area of Unnao, police said.

According to police, the wedding procession had arrived at Ajaypur village, where the two families completed the traditional 'dwarachar' and other rituals. The bride and groom then performed the ‘varmala’ ritual (exchanging of garlands) on the stage.

Soon after, the bride went to her room while the groom's family got busy with other preparations. Later, when the family members went to call her for the ‘phera’ ceremony, they found the woman missing.

Police said when the two families got to know that the woman had fled with a local youth, her father called the man on the phone. The bride spoke to him and conveyed that she wished to marry her lover and live with him.

Shocked by the turn of events, the two families had a heated exchange before the groom's side returned home without the bride, an eyewitness said.

The bride's father has lodged a complaint against the youth at the Purwa police station. A probe is and action will be taken as per law, a senior police officer told PTI.