Groom arrives in bullock cart to reduce wedding expenses

Thousands of people at a village in Bihar's Purnia district rubbed their eyes in disbelief when they saw the bridegroom arrive on a bullock cart.

And after a quiet wedding, there was a simple vegetarian feast for 25 select guests.

Makhmur Shakir Ansari (28) is an English teacher in New Delhi, but this farmer's son is so inspired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's call for weddings without dowry that he cut down on all ostentations and ensured that his wedding expenses did not exceed Rs 2,000.

"I fully endorse Nitish Kumar's campaign for a marriage without dowry and wanted to set an example. Many families have turned pauper... So we (Ansari and his bride Tarana Kausar) decided to go in for a simple wedding," Ansari told the media after the wedding.

The newlywed couple now wants to focus on educating their fellow villagers.

"Very few people in this part of Purnia are graduates. Both of us would like to help educate people in this Muslim-dominated area where the literacy rate is below 40%," Ansari said.

The guests were also made to take an oath to neither accept nor allow anyone to accept dowry.

"The two social evils – dowry and child marriage – are the biggest stumbling blocks in a society," Ansari added.