Cross-border virtual wedding: Jodhpur man marries Pakistani woman online

Despite the long-standing tensions and bitter rivalry between India and Pakistan, Arbaaz from Rajasthan's Jodhpur married Pakistan's Ameena via video conferencing. This marriage managed to transcend all boundaries.

Jodhpur (Rajasthan): After the stories of Seema Haider and Anju, who crossed borders to unite with their soulmates, took social media by storm, now netizens are amazed by yet another cross-border marvel – a virtual wedding where Mohammad Arbaaz, a video editor from Jodhpur, Rajasthan, tied the knot online with his beloved Ameena from Karachi, Pakistan. The ceremony adhered to Muslim rituals and took place through a heartfelt video conference on Wednesday night. Family and friends, beautifully dressed for the occasion, graced the online wedding with their presence. 'Qazis' were also present to officiate the union, reading the sacred 'Nikkahnama' to solemnize the marriage.

Talking to the media, Mohammad Afzal, father of the groom said, "We have relatives in Pakistan and they only got this marriage fixed. Even my elder son's wife is from Pakistan. This is an arranged marriage. Our new daughter-in-law can now apply for a visa to India easily after showing the 'Nikkahnama' or the marriage certificate."

Afzal further said, "We conducted the marriage via video conference because a Pakistani marriage is not valid in India. Now Ameena can easily come to India. We are happy with the online wedding as it is very pocket friendly and for middle-class families like ours, it reduces our burden of getting our children married. This marriage is also an example of a friendly relationship between India and Pakistan."

Arbaaz, the groom said, "This marriage was fixed by our relatives who live in Pakistan. Instead of us going there to get married, we decided to conduct this marriage online. Even if we get married in Pakistan, we will have to get married in India as well. This would've been very costly. Hence, we decided to get married online. Now my wife Ameen can easily get a visa to India by showing our marriage certificate."

Earlier in May, a Pakistani woman married online to a man in Jodhpur reached her in-law's house in the town after six months. The bride reached Jodhpur from Pakistan through the Wagah border.