RAIPUR: When a heavily drunk groom arrived with his wedding procession, 22-year-old Muskan Pradhan quietly removed her bridal veil, looked at her family and said, “If he cannot handle himself on his wedding day, how will he handle me?”Dressed in bridal finery and minutes away from her wedding, this woman made a decision that has travelled far beyond her village in Chhattisgarh as she has been appointed as counsellor in an anti-drug campaign in the district.As the baraat arrived at her home in Kosmanda village of Janjgir-Champa district on June 23, Muskan learnt that the groom was heavily intoxicated. Watching him struggle to even stand during the welcoming rituals, she walked out and refused to marry him, asking them to send the baraat back.Despite protests from the groom’s side and rising tensions that eventually required police intervention, Muskan stood by her decision. By the end of the night, the wedding procession had returned without a bride.The story, however, did not end there.Within 48 hours, Muskan was felicitated by the district administration, named the youth icon of Janjgir-Champa police’s anti-drug campaign and appointed as a counsellor with an honorarium of Rs 5,000 a month. Police also announced they would sponsor her education through college, while the district administration offered skill training and other govt support.A class X student and the eldest among four siblings, Muskan has spent much of her life helping her widowed mother raise the family after her father, who was addicted to alcohol, died about 15 years into the marriage. Financial hardship forced her to discontinue her studies and take up tailoring to support the household.Those memories shaped her decision.“I have seen my mother’s struggles because of alcoholism. I did not want to live the same life. I could see the red flags prominently,” Muskan said after the incident.Janjgir Champa SP Vijay Pandey said Muskan’s courage sent a powerful message against substance abuse and social pressure. “Young women should know they have the right to say no,” he said while felicitating her.Collector Janmejay Mahobe described her decision as an example of self-respect and assured all possible assistance for her education and livelihood.In a society where weddings often proceed despite glaring red flags to avoid social embarrassment, Muskan’s decision has resonated because it challenged a deeply entrenched norm.
