Thursday morning, when the rituals began at the Pushpa Byregowda Kalyan Mantap at Dodda Gollarahatti near Tavarekere, none had a clue that the bride, Kavya, would tie the knot with a stranger and not the one she was engaged to, and had a grand reception with, barely a day ago!
Triggering chaos and uproar, the original groom, Manjunath had done the vanishing act. But just when it seemed everything was going out of control, the elders intervened and found a new suitable boy, Srikanth, agreeable to both parties. Soon, the couple were married, but not before a cheating complaint was lodged against Manjunath and his relatives.
Manjunath, a resident of Nayandahalli in Govindarajanagar, and Kavya of Vasanthpur were engaged two months ago. While Thursday was the wedding day, the two had a grand reception on Wednesday night, a grand one at that, as sources put it.
On the wedding day, Manjunath told everyone he wanted to buy jaggery required for the wedding rituals. He requested Kavya’s brother to come with him to a nearby shop. Manjunath rode the bike with his future brother-in-law riding pillion. As the latter got down and was buying the jaggery, Manjunath sped away with the bike and a part of the jewellery.
Shocked, Kavya’s relatives rushed to the Tavarekere police station and lodged a complaint, also seeking a return of whatever dowry given, against Manjunath, and his relatives.
But this was just the beginning of another drama with a happy ending. Srikanth, a car driver hired by Rashtriya Basava Dal chief Mathe Mahadevi narrated the incident to her on phone. One of Kavya’s uncles was a devotee of the seer. She knew Kavya and her background, and was also aware that Kavya’s parents were looking for an alliance a few months ago. Srikanth’s parents too were looking for a bride for him. Mathe Mahadevi reportedly contacted Srikanth and asked him whether he could marry Kavya. Srikanth agreed!
Mathe Mahadevi contacted Kavya and her parents and her uncle and got their approval for the marriage. The wedding took place in a simple way, and both Srikanth and Kavya looked blissful.
A relative of Manjunath later told Deccan Herald that Manjunath was in love with a girl which was why he fled from the wedding hall.