A 61-year-old, in a room with his 20-year-old lover, was humiliated by his wife and daughter while the media filmed the episode and neighbours looked on.
Atmaram Pandey, a retired government official was holed in a one-room house in Faizabad’s Railway Colony. Wife Asha and daughter Shail, media persons and neighbours in tow descended upon the love nest on Tuesday afternoon. When persistent knocking failed to get the doors opened, hammers and chisels were brought out to break open the bolts.
A dazed Atmaram emerged to dish out a story of how he had never “looked” at the young girl from “that perspective”.  “She came to me and said she wants to marry me. I told her beta (child), I have never considered you in that light,” he said but was quick to add that he was willing to marry the girl to save her from humiliation.
Madhu’s version was: “There is nothing wrong in our relationship but the world has driven us to this.”
Neither Atmaram’s wife nor daughter were amused. The daughter picked up a stick to wallop Madhu, accusing her of destroying her father’s morals.
Wife Asha declared to the media, “I am making a public announcement. If this man tries to marry I will set him on fire or douse him in acid. Where is the law that allows this?” she thundered.
The local police who tried to break up the fight did not quite know how to respond so they hauled all involved to the thana. Madhu’s rickshaw puller father was also summoned and he refused to take his daughter back. For now the girl has been sent to the Nari Niketan.
Atmaram, who might have hoped to successfully emulate the Patna professor who achieved celebrity status when he was similarly caught by his wife with a much younger girlfriend, is for now cooling his heels at the police station.