Informed CRPF before marrying Pak woman; Sacked jawan seeks intervention of PM, Shah
A day after being dismissed from service for allegedly concealing his marriage to a Pakistani citizen and harbouring her beyond her visa’s validity, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper Munir Ahmed on Sunday appealed to the Prime Minister and Home Minister for justice. Addressing a press conference in Jammu, Ahmed said he had married his cousin Minal Khan, only after informing his department in the CRPF.
Ahmed, a resident of Gharotra in Jammu, said their marriage was arranged by their families and vowed to challenge his dismissal in court.
“I joined CRPF in 2017. In 2022, I told the department that I am planning to marry my cousin…the department put some objections…they demanded the wedding card and venue of the marriage along with the date… I cleared things in 2023 and gave it to the authorities…my request went to DIG Hiranagar and then to IG sector Jammu…they also demanded some more details from me after which I got the affidavits…then my request was forwarded to New Delhi" he said.
Displaying documents and pictures to support his claim, Ahmed said, “After getting the nod from the headquarters, our families decided to go ahead with the marriage online without waiting for the visa after the condition of my father, a cancer patient, deteriorated. His treatment was also borne by the force."
The CRPF personnel said he had applied for a No Objection Certificate (NOC), but he was told that such a provision does not exist. He claimed that he had completed the formalities by informing the government about his marriage to a foreign national in accordance in line with regulations.
“My wife is the daughter of my maternal uncle, who migrated from Jammu to Pakistan during the partition in 1947," Ahmed said, terming the social media reports that they met online and fell in love as false.
Minal Khan entered India through the Wagah-Attari border on February 28 this year. Her short-term visa ended on March 14. However, the High Court stayed her deportation, considering her application for a long-term visa (LTV) and how she is currently residing at Ahmed’s Jammu residence.
“One day I got a mail regarding exit permit of my wife in which it was told that she has to leave India. I told them that my wife is under LTV which was agreed by the authorities," claimed Ahmed.
Ahmed said he returned from leave and reported to the battalion headquarters at Sunderbani on March 25. But on March 27, “I was handed over a transfer order and posted with 41st Battalion at Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh without providing 15 days mandatory joining period.
“I was given the order copy and relieved immediately, leaving me with no option but to join my duties in Bhopal, where I joined on March 29. I faced the interview of the commanding officer and his deputy on reaching there and completed the documentation process, mentioning my marriage to a Pakistani woman," he said, adding he had also updated his marital status in the battalion data record book.
J & K