Rajasthan teen uses Facebook account to prove she was illegally married as a child

A Rajasthan teenage girl has managed to annul her marriage and prove in court that she was illegally married off as a minor using her husband's Facebook account, a child rights activist said on Thursday.

Sushila Bishnoi was married off by her parents when she was 12-years-old in 2009 in Barmer district. She had appealed to a court for annulment of her underage marriage. However, her husband kept denying of getting engaged with her. 

Sushila, with the help of her activist Kriti Bharti, thoroughly examined her husband's Fb account and showed the congratulatory messages that were posted on his wall to the court.  

After proper inspection of the matter, the court on Monday declared the marriage as 'invalid'.

“I wanted to study but my family and my in-laws wanted me to live with a drunkard,” Sushila was quoted as saying by a news agency.

Sushila ran away from home and got in touch with Bharti who helped her with the legal proceedings of the case. 

Girls are often married off in Rajasthan and live with their parents after the marriage ceremony until they reach 18 years. As soon as they reach 18, they are sent off to their in-laws without their permission or opinion.