Modi effect: Six newly-wed brides return home as in-laws' place have no toilets

Lucknow: Six newly-wed women in Uttar Pradesh walked out of their in-laws’ homes rather than walk into the fields to ease themselves. Taking their cue from Prime Minister Narendar Modi’s call in his Independence Day address for a toilet in every household, especially in rural areas, the young brides protested to their husbands and in-laws over lack of such a facility.[caption id=“attachment_1669195” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Demanding toilets. Reuters[/caption] These brides from Kushinagar district returned to their parents within weeks of tying the knot, a non-governmental organisation said. Neelam, Kalawati, Shakina, Niranjan, Gudiya and Sita of Khesiya village protested when they found there were no toilets attached to their houses. After spending a couple of days, they returned to their parental homes over the past two months. Sulabh International, an NGO working for providing low-cost sanitation, has announced it would build toilets free for the brides. Terming the brides’ rebellion as a “bold and extraordinary step”, Sulabh founder Bindeshwar Pathak told IANS that such incidents clearly show the changing mindset of girls over modern toilets. Sulabh spokesman Madan Jha said the NGO would construct the toilets free of cost without any delay so that the brides can return to their in-laws’ place soon. He also said the six women would be honoured for their bold stand. Two years back, Priyanka Bharti, a bride from Maharajgunj, was honoured for taking a similar step. Bharti now works as a Sulabh motivator and has also appeared with Bollywood actress Vidya Balan in a sanitation advertisement of the Union government. Sulabh has in the past handed over a cheque of Rs.5 lakh to a tribal woman, Anita Narre of Betul district in Madhya Pradesh, after she left her marital home within days of her wedding protesting lack of a toilet. Prime Minister Modi, during his Independence Day address, mentioned the need to build toilets in every home. IANS