Story 16: Separation due to Caste Discrimination
Manisha B.K( name changed) is 26 years old. Manisha was born as the youngest daughter to father Bhim Bahadur B.K. and mother Mani B.K. in Surkhet District, Panchapuri Municipality, Ward No. 9. Her family brought her up pretty well as she was the youngest daughter of the family. Manisha passed her S.L.C. exams at a school in her village. Later on, she came to Birendranagar, Surkhet to study in class 11 and started living there. While studying in Birendranagar, Manisha started using Facebook. She met a person from Dailekh on Facebook who became her regular chatmate. Later on, while talking on Facebook, they fell in love and decided to get married. After a while, they even started meeting. When it came to marriage they knew the boy’s family wouldn’t accept Manisha as she belonged to a Dalit family while the boy belonged to a Brahmin family which led to Manisha and the boy running away from home secretly and going to Kathmandu.
After going to Kathmandu, Manisha’s husband got a job in a cooperative. However, the husband got in an accident just after 2 months of their marriage. After her husband’s bike accident, his family members came to Kathmandu to meet him. Manisha’s husband had already told her not to tell that she belongs to the Dalit caste if his family members ever asked about her caste. Therefore, when the family members inquired about her caste, Manisha informed them that her surname was Gautama which falls under the Brahmin caste.
Manisha’s husband got better gradually however; he started treating her badly. The Husband also stopped going to work. After some time, Manisha’s husband became contactless, leaving her stranded in Kathmandu. He even blocked her on Facebook as well as on the phone. Manisha faced a lot of problems as she couldn’t find her husband’s whereabouts. Later on, Manisha informed her parents about the issue. Manisha reached Surkhet with the help of her father, mother, and sister and started living with her parents again. Manisha also resumed her studies and got admitted to class 11 in the village school again.
After some time, Manisha’s husband contacted her on the phone and asked her to meet him. She told him to meet her at her parents’ home. However, the husband denied her request and told her he would not be coming to her parents’ home. Instead, the husband started abusing and threatening her on the phone. The constant abuse and threats gave Manisha immense mental pressure and stress. In the midst of being abused, Manisha coincidentally met with a social mobilizer from Aawaaj and came in contact with the organization at Surkhet.
When Manisha reached Aawaaj, she got counselling from a counsellor. As she got comfortable later on, Manisha gave detailed information about all her problems. The counsellor gave Manisha legal advice as well. Manisha also informed that there is no possibility of reconciliation with her husband therefore she wanted to legally separate from him.
Later on, Aawaaj contacted her husband, he even denied coming to the organization. As the marriage couldn’t be salvaged and Manisha also wanted to legally separate, she explored information on the legal process from the organization. The organization prepared a case for legal process in coordination and recommendation from the ward office. The organization has prepared a divorce case according to Manisha’s wishes and is currently proceeding with the legal process.