Bhopal Gay Couple ‘Elopes’ after Marriage
Bhopal — Sign o’ the Times? A gay couple that stunned conservative Bhopal by entering into publicized matrimony on Saturday has gone underground for fear of their act inviting an attack or even a legal wrangle.
Surprisingly, both the partners – Israr (25) and Ayaz (30) – also figure in cross-gender marriages, while the latter has been married for nine years during which he fathered two daughters, the former married a girl less than a year ago.
The two, also colleagues at a voluntary organization that seeks a ban on the sale of alcohol, are residents of the Putli Ghar area in the old city and have known each other for nearly a decade.
The ‘marriage’ has been widely condemned by Islamic scholars and has emerged as a subject of choice for discussion at the famous ‘patiyas’ in Bhopal, a former city state with a history of feminine rule and references of male homosexuality.
