The Tanishq ad might have chosen to present a sugary-sweet version of how interfaith marriages work, but it seems to have brushed some very serious problems under the carpet.
In Delhi, 28-year-old Dildar Qureshi pretended to be Rahul to befriend a 13-year-old girl, and has now kidnapped her and absconded. As per a report in Dainik Jagran, the 13-year old girl had told her mother that she was going out to meet a friend. But when she didn’t return home, the worried mother looked for her and contacted the police. In CCTV footage, the girl was seen heading towards the Qutub Metro station with Dildar Querishi.
The mother says that Dildar Quereshi lived in the neighbourhood and drove an e-rickshaw. He told everyone his name was Rahul. He had several different Facebook profiles under different names. Dildar Quereshi was a resident of Shegupur village in UP’s Badaun district.
Quereshi used to live with Soni, a disabled woman who he claimed was his sister, but people later learnt that she was his wife. On 6th October, Soni, who was 8 months pregnant, suffered a miscarriage and lost her child. Dildar did not attend the child’s funeral, and went missing. Soni’s sister alleges that he never looked after her, and was having affairs with other women.
Soni’s sister revealed that Dildar had married her just 11 months prior, but soon after the marriage they discovered that he already had a wife and 2 children. When Soni learnt of this, her sister says that something broke inside of her. She then suffered the miscarriage, and eventually lost her life.
Dilwar Querishi’s brother told Jagran that he had initially married a girl in his village, but had then run off with another woman, and had never returned to the village. He had gone on to have two children with the second woman, and eventually appears to have married the disabled woman. Soni, in Delhi. He is now accused of running away with a 13-year-old minor. The police are currently searching for the duo.
