In immigration-obsessed Punjab, 'contractual marriages', where young men piggyback on the IELTS score of their prospective brides to foreign destinations, is nothing new. However, recently there has been a growing trend of women ghosting their husbands after reaching foreign shores.

A similar incident played out in Punjab's Barnala town, prompting a man to die by suicide due to alleged harassment by his in-laws. The deceased, Gurpreet Singh, blamed his wife Ravneet Kaur and her family for harassing him and demanding money.

Gurpreet Singh was married to Ravneet for seven years. To send his wife abroad, Gurpreet funded her IELTS studies and exam. IELTS is an English proficiency test.

Gurpreet's family is said to have sold two acres of land and spent Rs 8 lakh on sending Ravneet abroad. However, Gurpreet's dream of sending his wife abroad and settling with her faced obstacles as his in-laws continued to demand more money. Unable to take the mental agony, Gurpreet ended his life.

GROWING TREND OF SUCH INCIDENTS IN PUNJAB

Lovepreet married Beant in August 2019 on the condition that the groom's family will fund the bride's education in Canada. In return, Kaur will help Lovepreet immigrate to the country by acquiring a spouse visa. The family had claimed that it spent Rs 37 lakh on the same.

There have also been several instances where women entering into contractual marriages failed to clear the IELTS exam or complete their studies abroad. This results in both the parties ending up in court, with the grooms demanding their money back.

Source: India Today